Giving Up To You
by ShatteredHeart-BlueSapphire
Summary: YUGI/OC!SIDEPAIRING!The new girl was rather strange.She wasn't very friendly and her best friend was a quiet,shy boy.Yugi and his friends decide to welcome them.After a horrible episode she realizes she can have other friends & then,there's Yugi.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER! I do not own the Yugioh anime, characters, manga or anything else you may recognize! The Abridged series belongs to LittleKuriboh (just in case)!**

**A/N:** Um… so, I'm not exactly sure how this came about. The ideas are always sketchy and I develop them as I write… yeah, that's probably why they never turn out as I want them too… or turn out bad. This WAS supposed to be a oneshot. Still, hope you read and review to let me know what you think (no flames please. If you have something to say, do word it in a non-flame manner). Thank you! _Unless specified, Ryou will be referred to as 'Bakura' or 'Bakura-kun' by everyone that's not Lin!_

**BEWARE THE OOCness, ATTEMPT AT RAPE (in a future chapter), AND CUSSING! As you'll notice, there will be some significant differences from the original.** **Then again, that's probably why this is a fanfic.**

~.~.~.

As the new students, of course they would get a lot of attention. She didn't know why she felt so uncomfortable even when she had been expecting it. She only felt bad for her friend, who was having worse luck then her, considering his gentle demeanor didn't allow him to shoo people away. But perhaps that wasn't a bad thing, after all, the cute little boy with the Millennium Puzzle had come over to talk to them… or to her friend. His friends didn't seem too bad she supposed. Maybe she didn't need to be so protective now.

Yugi looked at the girl, the other transfer student and he wondered if she was listening to their conversation. If she was she gave no indication. He was glad to have two new additions to the class, perhaps they both liked to play games. At least he hoped they would be nice enough to not be mean to him or his friends.

"Lin?" the white-haired boy asked. She simply turned her head to look at him and raised an eyebrow. He sighed and said, "Be nice."

She seemed slightly surprised at this. "I wasn't aware I was being mean," she told him. He gave her a look. "Okay, I get it. Sheesh, you'd think I just strangled someone," she said with a roll of her eyes. "At least tell me you were talking about something interesting," she added.

"You mean you weren't listening?" Jounouchi asked her.

"I don't see why I should be. After all, I-"

"Lin," the boy, Bakura Ryou, said in a warning tone.

"-I have a tendency of daydreaming," she finished dully. It was obvious that wasn't how she was going to finish her sentence. Bakura looked amused. "What? It's true enough," she defended and her lips quirked.

"Lin-san?" Yugi tried. When she looked at him he asked meekly, "I can call you that, right?"

She blinked at him before shrugging. "I don't see why not."

"Do you like games?" the small boy asked.

"Sure," she answered as if this was trivial. Granted, she thought it was.

"What kind of games?" the small boy, Yugi she thought was his name, asked.

"Well, I like board games, but that's Ryou's specialty. Mine is card games. But I like trying any type of games," she said with a shrug. Still, she thought it was strange that someone would be so interested in the type of _games_ she liked.

"What about Capsule Monsters?" the brunet boy asked her.

"I like to play it, sure. But that's more Ryou's game. I'm more into stuff like the Digimon card game and Duel Monsters, with a preference in Duel Monsters," she said nonchalantly.

"You're pretty good at Capsule Monsters though and even Monster World," Ryou interjected.

"Not as good as you. Besides, you're pretty good at Duel Monsters, so we're even," she said with a smirk.

"Well, you're lucky then. Yugi just loves games," the brunet girl answered.

"Really? That's great," Ryou answered and Lin made no comment. She didn't need to comment, she wasn't much for meaningless conversation after all, unless it was with Ryou.

It was then they were surrounded by other boys and girls. Ryou shifted nervously and Lin only sighed. Oh, here it came. Again, she'd have to play the mean girl, considering Ryou kind of had trouble saying no. "So, you're Lin, right?" one of the boys said. His tone sounded rather rude.

So it was her turn to start. "That's Perry to you, you dolt," she replied curtly.

"Hey, it was just a question," he said as the group surrounding them stared.

"And I was just implying you should have some manners," she retorted looking bored.

"Well, you're being rude yourself, so you shouldn't chastise someone for not having manners," another boy added.

"I'm rude to those who do not show the proper respect," she said focusing that unwavering gaze on the one who had made the comment. "Now, if you don't mind, I have better things to do than receive underserved admonishment from boys I care not to get to know," she told them bluntly. Her eyes were lifeless as she looked at the boys of the group, with the exception of the small boy and his friends. The boys left in group, murmuring. She didn't care, it was the reason she played the mean girl role. The faster she could get rid of the brainless fools, the better.

That conversation having settled, now it was poor Ryou's turn. "So, you're Bakura Ryou, right? You're from England?" one of the girls said. Lin fished through her bag for her book. She always had one with her. Well, given, she could relax a little. Girls were generally less rude than the boys, she hoped that like last time, Ryou would be able to keep them off. She began reading, aware of the fact the small boy with the Millennium Puzzle and his friends were still there but hadn't said anything. Now, let's see how long it would take. She opened her book and began reading, though she listened to the conversation.

"Um, yes," he answered uncomfortably and Lin couldn't help but smirk.

"Well, since you're new here, we should show you around," another said and they went into a fit of giggles. Lin rolled her eyes but made no comment. She knew her friend was cute, but the girl's needed to be more in control of themselves.

"Thank you, but it's all right. I was actually talking to them," Ryou said meekly with a slight blush as he indicated the group with the small boy. Lin thought it wouldn't be long before one of them said something mean or rude. After all, someone like the small boy, who looked like a nerd, usually got looked down upon by people, especially giggly girls like these.

"But I'm sure you can meet more interesting people," yet another girl said. And there it was, implying these people weren't interesting enough to hang around with. Lin saw nothing wrong with the small boy and his group of friends. Okay, maybe she did, but Ryou seemed to have taken a liking to them (minus the whole Millennium Item thing), so who were these girls to say?

"W-well," Ryou began and Lin could feel his gaze on her. She sighed and put her book down. Her head turned to look at the girls, who seemed to become aware that she was looking at them.

"Out of curiosity, do you girls have the sixth sense?" Lin asked them with a raised eyebrow.

"Don't all girls?" the one who had asked Ryou if he'd come from England asked.

Lin always found this troublesome. She had to change the way she spoke to the girls according to behavior. In a group, there were girls who were rude and those who weren't, and so Lin had to answer accordingly. This one seemed okay. "Well, apparently not. Tell me, what impression do you get if I say, 'are you listening?'"

"Obviously that you're trying to get the attention of the person you were speaking to," the third girl who had spoken, the rude one, answered.

"Or that you want to know if I understood what you were trying to say," the first girl replied.

Lin fixed her eyes on the nicer girl and gave a teeny, tiny smile. "As you can see, not all girls have the sixth sense. However, you seem to have it, and I know you made sense of my friend's comment." She tried to be nice about it.

"I know," the girl replied. "I just…"

"Don't worry, I know. But sometimes it's not good to rush into things," Lin advised.

"Are you listening? We were trying to talk to him," the third girl now reminded.

Lin rolled her eyes and looked at said girl with a hard look. "And if you didn't realize, he didn't want to talk to you. He obviously was having a better time talking to them and not you. If you don't understand that then you don't deserve to talk to him… or show him around the school grounds. Now, do me a favor and save us both the trouble of this senseless conversation and _leave_," Lin told her.

"I really do prefer to stay here," Ryou said quietly. With a huff and a glare at Lin, the girl's left.

The first girl who had spoken smiled slightly and with a blush said, "I'm Yuki."

"Pleasure," Lin and Ryou said simultaneously and the girl only nodded and left.

"Finally, a girl with sense," Lin said returning to her book with a shake of her head.

"Thank you Lin," Ryou told her and she didn't need to look at him to know he was smiling.

She smirked, her eyes never leaving the book. "Sure thing Ry, it's what I do, keep people out of glomping distance." She heard chuckles from the small boy and his group.

"That was a new one though," he commented.

"Hey, if I'm going to play the 'mean girl' role, I might as well have fun with it," she answered with a shrug.

"Is this why Bakura asked you to be nice?" the blond boy asked. She didn't answer as she knew Ryou would be the one to explain the fact she was there to keep Ryou safe and keep those overbearing girls off his case. He also explained she didn't like boys fawning over her and so she was mean to them right off the bat so they wouldn't bother her later.

"Well, at least there's someone else with sense," the brunet girl said.

"My kindred spirit," Lin muttered sarcastically but was loud enough to be heard. Her eyes hadn't left the book and she turned a page.

"Lin," Ryou said warningly.

"What?" she asked and looked up. They had a kind of staring match and Lin sighed. Her face took on a trace of guilt and sheepishness. "Okay, maybe the sarcastic tone slipped," she admitted before turning back to her book.

"So, you're naturally mean?" the blond boy asked and his friend's tried to shush him.

"No, just on the defensive," she answered her eyes never leaving her book.

"So, do you like us that you're not mean to us?" the brunet boy asked.

Her head lifted but she looked at Ryou. Then she sighed and said, "I don't interfere when Ryou wants to befriend people." She returned to her book.

"Um, are you two related?" the brunet girl asked.

"No, we're just friends," Ryou said uncomfortably. Yugi, noticing how uncomfortable Bakura was, changed the subject. For the rest of the time, Lin didn't speak unless spoken to.

~.~.~.

**Hope you liked! Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER! I do not own the Yugioh anime, characters, manga or anything related. Just in case, the Abridged series is done by LittleKuriboh!**

**A/N:** Um, not much to say. Sorry for any OOCness and anything else you find apologizing-worthy.

~.~.~.

Two days later it was after school. Ryou (and therefore Lin) had stayed after school for cleaning duty. They had finished rather quickly, they were both efficient and had much practice considering they shared an apartment. Unfortunately, they weren't alone. Three girls from the group of the first day whom Lin had told off were there, and of course, that rude mean girl Lin had talked back to was there. She seemed to be the leader. Lin should have been expecting this, it had happened before, but she had put her guard down since she knew that Ryou would be alright now. Because of this, she had forgotten about herself.

"Oh, look who we have here, the know-it-all," the rude girl, apparently the leader, said mockingly.

"Oh, look, I found the girl that doesn't know anything," Lin returned with a smirk. "Ryou, why don't you start going on home without me?" she asked nonchalantly.

"But, Lin-"

"I'll catch up, don't worry," she responded as if it were nothing before adding, "I'll be fine."

"Lin-"

"Now, Ryou," she said and now her tone was serious.

He looked worriedly at her. "Okay," he said quietly. He began walking off.

Lin turned her attention to the girls. Why did she feel déjà vu? Oh, right, because she'd been in this situation before. "Well, let's get this cat fight out of the way, shall we?" she asked dully. She didn't pride herself in being untouchable, she was only one girl after all. However, she did pride herself in not being bested, that way she could always say, 'you should see the other gal'. And now, three against one, she concentrated on packing some good hits on that leader girl, that one that had been a thorn in her side. Lin was hit quite badly as well, but hey, she'd done well considering she'd had to deal with three girls… and those girls were pretty weak. She could seriously say she'd had worse.

Lin felt like years had passed when the fight was over, she wasn't sure how long it had been. At the moment she was down on one knee, one of her hands braced on the ground and she was breathing hard. The girls had gone, whimpering and nursing their injuries. Lin was way passed that. "I would have thought you would have left something for me," a voice called out and footsteps began making their way toward her.

She sighed but whether in relief or resignation nobody knew. "Bakura," was all she said. She accepted his offered hand and he helped her stand. "Why would I leave anything for you? I hardly get to have any fun," she said with a smirk, her usually pretty face now bruised and bloody. When Bakura caught sight of her face his features hardened. "Calm down will you? It's not like it hasn't happened before. By the way, what are you doing here?" she asked. With some difficulty she linked her arm through his and they began walking toward home.

"Are you stupid? Did you think I'd leave you here? Just who do you think I am?" he asked with a scowl.

She sighed. "No, I'm not. Maybe I did think it. And you're Bakura… the spirit of the Millennium Ring," she said answering the questions he'd asked. They walked on home in the same fashion.

Once home they each went to their respective rooms to change. When she saw him next, Ryou was in control. She smiled at him. "Told you I'd be fine," she winced slightly. It hurt to smile.

Ryou's eyes widened. She didn't know why it surprised him, he should be used to it by now. It didn't happen too often but it was bound to happen more than once when one went from school to school. He immediately went buzzing about as Lin watched amused. They both knew the drill. Ice, bandages, etc. And so, everything went as it routinely did when these things happened. It might happen again, it might not, it all really depended on how stubborn the alpha female of the group was.

~.~.~.

The next morning Ryou and Lin had gotten to school early. Lin didn't look as bad as the day before. Thanks to the ice the swelling was at the minimum. However, the bruises weren't very nice and the band aids made things seem more serious than it was. Still, she kept up her normal demeanor, after all, that stupid girl she had gotten into a fight with wouldn't see Lin being weak, her beating meant nothing to Lin.

"What happened to you?" the blond boy asked.

"Routine," she answered simply and went through her bag for her book. After all, since they were there, Ryou was bound to want to talk to them, something Lin didn't want to do.

"Routine?" the small boy with the Puzzle asked.

"Huh, didn't know classrooms had echoes. Guess you learn something every day," she said calmly and opened her book.

"Lin," Ryou said warningly.

"Oh, come on, cut me some slack, will you?" Lin said but it was said jokingly. She sighed when she caught sight of him looking guilty. "Will you stop looking so guilty already? It had nothing to do with you," she told him.

"Yes, it did," the whitette insisted.

She snorted. "It didn't, you were just the excuse. Girls like her simply don't like to see their leadership status threatened and since I did just that, they needed an excuse," she explained with a roll of her eyes as she turned a page of her book.

"You can't mean those girls from the first day did this?" again the small boy asked. Lin didn't answer but gave a sigh when she heard familiar voices.

"Aw, did something happened to you?" a rather annoying, girlish voice asked in a mocking tone.

"Oh, yes. Yesterday some stupid girls tried to teach me a lesson and failed epically. But enough about me, because it seems that whatever happened to you and your friends was much worse," Lin said in mock worry.

The girl's eyes narrowed. "Don't get smart with me," she said.

"I'm not. I'm naturally like this. Don't flatter yourself thinking I'm smart just for you. By the way, that color purple looks lovely on you, I just wished it looked that good on me," Lin taunted with a smirk.

"Yesterday wasn't enough for you then?" the girl asked in what Lin supposed was an attempt at a threatening tone.

Lin gave a mocking laugh though it kind of hurt to do so. "Enough? Let me tell you something she-wolf. You're not my first fight. I've been in so many I've made it a habit to rank them. And you know something? You rank right at the bottom of my list. You and you're puppies are pretty weak. I can easily say I've had much worse," she informed in a rather flippant tone. Then Lin's features turned dangerous and threatening, it made the bystanders fidget nervously. "Let me tell you something else. I can be a real bitch, and you don't want to see me get angry. If you had something to think about yesterday, then let me say it's _nothing_ compared to what I can really do to you," she told them and even her tone was malicious.

"You think this is over?" the leader asked but had much less conviction in her voice.

Lin smiled pleasantly though there was still some threat in her features, but more or less seemed less imposing. "It's never over. But if you plan to take me on again, then at least have the courtesy of being fair and make it one on one. I mean, as much as I don't mind beating the crap out of you, I don't like getting your blood off my uniform, it kind of sucks. So, the less blood the better. Just a warning," she said nonchalantly. The girl said no more and she and her friends tried to leave with some dignity because they stuck their noses in the air and strutted away.

There was silence for a moment in which Lin returned to her book as if nothing had happened. "What's with the canine references?" the brunet boy finally broke the silence by asking.

Lin didn't look up from her book but answered nonetheless. "Haven't you ever head the expression: girls travel in packs?" she asked.

"Like wolves," the brunet girl made the connection and sounded amused.

"And what do you call a female dog? A bitch. It's just unfortunate those girls won't be able to make the connection," Lin said sounding slightly regretful at the last part but continued reading.

"You really can be mean," the blond said.

"Did I ever imply otherwise?" she asked casually and turned the page.

"You seem rather upset about this, you usually just let it go," Ryou commented quietly.

"Well, for one I just hate it when it's not a fair fight, and for another, I had already met her before but she doesn't remember," Lin commented casually.

"You have?"

"Sure, remember I told you about this spoiled brat at the grocery store?" Lin asked.

"Oh… the one that knocked something off your hands on purpose because you had gotten to the line before her. That was her?"

"Sure thing. She didn't even try to make it subtle. I mean, I know I don't make a good first impression on people, but come on, that's just ridiculous," she said and rolled her eyes.

"I don't think you make a bad first impression on people," the small boy said and Lin couldn't help but stop reading and looked at him. He was smiling at her.

"That's because Ryou didn't let me," she muttered and returned to her book. She wasn't sure why she was trying not to blush.

~.~.~.

**Yay for a Bakura appearance! Hoped you liked! Please read and review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER! I do not own the Yugioh anime, characters, manga or anything related! Just in case, Abridged series done by LittleKuriboh!**

**A/N:** Don't worry, things start picking up from here. Sorry for OOCness and anything you find apologizing-worthy!

~.~.~.

The second week had passed without problems and both Ryou and Lin were glad it was the weekend. Ryou had been reluctant but had accepted an invitation from Yugi and his friends to "show him around the city" though they only spoke about going to the arcade. It would be nice considering it had been a long time since he'd gone out with friends. He was afraid Bakura would take control of his body unexpectedly but after Lin and him spoke she had assured Ryou that he wouldn't, after all, there couldn't be witnesses to what he wanted to do. She said she'd told him that in order to get what he wanted he had to do it in a more subtle, private way. Ryou hadn't agreed with this, but Lin had just shrugged and said that if it kept Bakura from causing mayhem, it worked with her. She had informed Ryou that she wouldn't be going with them because she didn't like being with people that weren't him or Bakura, so it was just Ryou. He was already dressed and Lin was in her room most likely reading manga, watching anime, or doing something on her computer or laptop. His new friends were nice though, so the fact she wasn't going meant she trusted them at least enough to expect them to be there for Ryou. He smiled. Even if she pretended not to like them she had to like them at least a little to let him go on by himself. He wasn't by any means helpless, she was just overprotective of him and while other people would find it annoying, Ryou welcomed it, especially because of Bakura. He had a feeling she was overprotective of him _because_ of Bakura.

Ryou had also noticed that though she wasn't really talkative with his friends she was relaxed enough around them, and he had a feeling she liked Yugi and just hadn't realized it yet. He smiled at this. It wouldn't really surprise him if she really did like him, after all, though it didn't seem like it, she was all for the small and cute… which is why she had plushies in her room. He thought that maybe Yugi might like her too, he was the one that mostly spoke to her, mostly to tell her that she wasn't as mean as she made herself out to be, and Ryou silently agreed with this. Yugi also blushed slightly at certain comments Lin made.

His thoughts were interrupted when there was a knock at the door. "Ry, your lovers are here!" he heard Lin shout from her room.

Ryou laughed at this and went to open the door. Indeed, his friends were there. He invited them in realizing he didn't have his wallet with him. He passed Lin's room and saw she had taken her normal sitting positions. Her knees were drawn up to her chest, her feet on the chair and she was holding a plushy to her as she watched anime on her laptop. "You should at least go say hi," he commented as he went by.

"Don't wanna," was the distracted response, her eyes not leaving the screen. He chuckled and pocketed his wallet.

Yugi waited in the living room with his friends. He wasn't sure if Lin was going to be going with them as she hadn't made it sure. He really wanted her to come. He knew she'd really like the arcade and maybe he could get to know her better. He was sure she wasn't as mean as she acted or said so. He was sure she was nice. After all, she protected Bakura so it meant she was actually pretty nice. He saw Bakura coming toward them shaking his head slightly and smiling a little. Yugi couldn't help but wonder just what kind of relationship Lin and Bakura had.

"All right, I'm ready," he announced with a smile.

"Isn't Lin coming?" Jounouchi asked. Yugi looked at Bakura hopefully.

"No," was the simple response.

"Oh," Yugi couldn't help but say. He hoped he didn't sound or look as disappointed as he felt. He wasn't sure what to do when Bakura looked at him.

"She might, give me a moment," was all Bakura said before he went toward what Yugi thought was the direction of Lin's room. He saw Bakura walk into her room and close the door. It was silent a moment. None of them really knew what to expect, but next they knew they wished it had been different. They heard muffled shouting and screaming and there were what sounded like things being thrown followed by more shouting. More bangs and a quiet stillness.

"You think they killed each other in there?" Honda asked.

Yugi laughed nervously. "Of course not," he said but was quite unsure. It was difficult to imagine Bakura shouting at anyone, much less throwing things around.

They saw Bakura come out of the room smoothing out his hair. He offered them a cheerful smile. "I hope you don't mind waiting a little longer for Lin to come out," he said.

"Not at all," Anzu answered and worriedly asked, "Everything's fine, right?"

"What? Oh yes, of course. Sometimes Lin has to be coaxed to do things she pretends she doesn't want to do," Bakura said with a smile.

They didn't have to wait long and soon Lin came out of her room. She was dressed plainly and boyishly. She shot Bakura a glare and walked up to them and gave them a nod. "We _are_ going to be doing something other than standing around here, right?" she asked sounding annoyed.

"Right, let's go," Bakura answered in a chipper tone.

They left the apartment and as Lin closed the door Yugi could have sworn he heard her hiss at Bakura, "Just because you forced me into this doesn't mean you're going to make me enjoy it." Yugi felt a little downcast at that. Maybe it should have been better if she had stayed home. Still, he pretended not to hear and so they all began walking in the direction of the arcade. She didn't speak to them, her hands in her pockets as she focused her eyes on where she was going and not on any of them.

…

Once they reached the arcade and went in, they paused and looked around. Yugi noticed her eyes lighted up slightly when she looked at the machine filled with different kinds of plushies that one had to grab with that metallic-hand-thing. He wasn't sure what it was called but she seemed interested in it. However, she shifted her eyes away only to focus them on Bakura when he tugged excitedly at her sleeve.

"Look! Look over there! We haven't played DDR in a long time!" he said excitedly.

"So?" she said dully.

Bakura was not discouraged by this attitude. "Oh, come on, I know you like it too!" he said and smiled at her.

"Only with you," she said curtly.

"Please," he said giving her puppy eyes.

She stared at him a moment before sighing. "How can I say no with cow eyes like those?" she queried with a shake of her head. However, she didn't seem in the least bit amused.

"You like DDR?" came Anzu's tentative question.

"We both do. Back home we used to play it in tag teams in like, unofficial, small competitions. It was a lot of fun," Bakura answered for both of them as he pulled her along toward said game.

She disengaged herself from him and glared at the ground as she walked. "I can get there myself," she bit out. Once there she said, "You can't make me dance. I'll play but I won't dance."

"But…" Bakura trailed off and he only looked at her.

They stared at each other a moment and her eyes narrowed before she focused them on Anzu. "You like to play?" Lin asked Anzu and gestured toward the game.

"Yeah," Anzu replied with a smile.

"Good. Hey Ry, I found you a new partner," she said simply and turned around.

She was about to walk away when he said, "But I want to play with you." He said it in a teary voice and this made her turn around. She stared at him a moment before she gave a reluctant nod. He perked up right then and took her hand.

She gave him a dull look. "You cheat."

"It worked, didn't it?" he asked with a smile.

"I'm so glad you're the only one that can push my buttons," she said as he led her up stage.

Yugi watched. She seemed awfully focused and her features remained neutral. Her eyes were fixed on the screen. The song Bakura chose must have been one that they had danced to before because their moves were really good and almost synchronized. They were both pretty good at it. When it ended Bakura left the stage with a flushed face and a huge smile. Lin on the other hand looked slightly annoyed but resigned. Her face was also flushed from the exercise and Yugi blushed slightly at the thought that crossed his mind: that she looked awfully cute like that.

"That was great!" Anzu told them.

"Thanks but we haven't played in a while so we're a little out of practice," Bakura answered excitedly.

"I like DDR too. I want to study so I can become a professional dancer once I graduate," she announced with a slight smile. She seemed a little embarrassed saying this.

Lin surprised everyone. "I'm sure you'll be able to if you really want to do it," she said and for once there wasn't any sarcasm in her voice. Then she looked away from them and walked away.

"She must really like you, Anzu," Bakura said with a little smile.

"She has a funny way of showing it," Jounouchi answered.

"She's not as social as she used to be, so it's hard for her. She usually didn't interact with my friends back home," he answered.

"You mean she wasn't always like this?" Honda asked.

"No, she used to be really social but then… we started moving schools. Since people weren't particularily nice to me she started coming out to my defense and hers, so now she's usually on the defensive," Bakura explained a little guiltily.

"She really cares about you," Anzu noticed.

"Yes, sometimes more than for herself," he said with a shake of her head.

"Well, we should show her that she doesn't need to be on the defensive with us," Yugi said more confidently than he felt. He wasn't exactly sure if they'd be able to do that. Still, his friends agreed cheerily.

Anzu and Bakura stayed at the DDR while Yugi, Jounouchi, and Honda went along looking for a game to play. They found Lin at a shooting game, against a boy. Her legs were spread apart her hands holding the fake gun at the screen. Again, she looked awfully concentrated, as if nothing else existed but her and the game. They watched as she made shot after shot and she didn't miss. In the end, she won the game. She nodded at her opponent before putting the gun down and walking away.

Yugi and his friends went toward her and called out to her. She turned around and raised an eyebrow at him. He smiled at her. "Let's go play a game together," he suggested.

She frowned and seemed to deliberate. Reluctantly she said, "I might as well." They went around looking for an interesting game. Then they came across a video fighting game. Yugi allowed Honda and Jounouchi to go against her before him. She beat them without much sweat. She didn't seem either excited or smug about her wins. She sighed. They began to play and now both Yugi and Lin seemed concentrated on the game. As it happened they started getting a crowd of people. Their game was taking a rather long time. Their fight and moves were even and both were quick thinkers. In the end, Yugi won, but not by very much. There was a lot of cheering and Yugi was surprised and glad she wasn't a sore loser.

She gave him a nod and a quirk of lips. Her eyes held excitement but she didn't show it in her expression. "You're pretty good," was all she said.

"I think you're amazing at games! You're a real challenge," he said with an open smile. It was so much fun to have someone who gave you a real challenge. She stuffed her hands in her pockets and she looked away from him with a slight blush and Yugi didn't understand why, but she only made a sound of acknowledgment.

Through the crowd they heard someone calling Lin's name. They turned around and saw Anzu and Bakura making their way toward them. "Guess what we found?" Bakura asked excitedly.

"What?" Yugi asked catching on to Bakura's excitement.

"Air hockey and Pac man," was the answer.

Yugi saw Lin blink at this. "Air… hockey?"

"Yeah, remember when we used to play it when we were smaller?" he asked.

"I remember," was all Lin said.

"Well, come on, let's go play!" Bakura said already taking her hand and pulling her along. She didn't answer to this. Yugi and the others followed, curious at this turn of events. Lin didn't show it physically, but her eyes looked awfully bright with excitement.

At the air hockey game, Bakura and Lin took their places. The game was intense as they were both calculating, but in the end, Lin won. Her lips quirked. "Always a challenge playing with you," she said.

Bakura laughed. "And that's why I always like playing with you," he said.

Jounouchi and Honda, ever the rash ones, decided that they wanted to play against her too. Admittedly, they were defeated pretty easily. Yugi approached her. "Can I play against you too?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Why not?"

Yugi went toward the other side. Some of the bystanders who had watched Bakura and Lin play were still there and some had watched Yugi and Lin play before, so they decided to stay and watch. "Let's play two games," Yugi suggested.

Lin frowned. "Two? Isn't it three?" she asked sounding slightly confused.

Yugi shook his head. "Just two," he said again.

She shot him a strange look. "Okay," she said before shrugging. She went into what Yugi now called her game-mode. Concentrated, her eyes following the puck. Again, their game took a long time, once again attracting a crowd. Neither seemed to noticed this, both absorbed in their game. She won the first game, but she didn't make a comment on that. Yugi only smiled and got ready for their second game. Again, this game took a while. In that match, Yugi won. Her lips quirked once again. "I'm impressed," she told him in a neutral tone.

He blushed at the compliment but he smiled at her. "I'm glad you're really good, it's more fun this way," he told her. She made another sound of acknowledgement and nodded. Then she was dragged by Bakura to play Pacman.

"It makes me wonder just what kind of relationship those two have," Anzu said coming to stand next to Yugi.

"I do too. Do you think they're a couple?" he asked.

"Maybe. She's very defensive of him and he seemed awfully uncomfortable when I asked if they were related. And look at how he acts," Anzu said.

Yugi felt decidedly disappointed at this. "Yeah," was all he said.

"You like her, don't you?" she asked him. When he looked up at her she gave him this knowing look.

He blushed at this. "Um… yeah…" he said awkwardly.

"It's okay, I won't tell," Anzu replied and then were joined by Honda and Jounouchi, so they knew not to pursue that conversation.

…

Yugi was alone at the moment playing another video fighting game against some guy sitting across from him. He admitted this guy wasn't very good at it, he bet he could get more of a challenge with Lin, she was really good. It was so much fun playing against her, the challenge of it was so exhilarating! He beat the guy again, and unfortunately he was a sore loser. The guy went around and looked down at Yugi who was sitting down on the stool. He looked up at the guy.

"You think you're so good?" the guy asked.

"I don't know what you're-" but he was interrupted when the guy pushed him hard and off the stool.

"I'll teach you," he said. He landed a good kick.

"Hey, watch it, will you?" came a new voice.

"Lin-san," Yugi managed. She walked up to him and offered a hand. He took it and once he had stood she stood in front of him.

"Go mind your own business," she instructed.

"He cheated," the guy insisted.

"Stop being a sore loser and get a grip. Go and find a game you're actually good at, if you can, or leave," she said with a glare.

"Hey, what's going on?" Jounouchi now came with drinks in hand closely followed by Honda.

The guy, realizing that the small boy wasn't alone, glared at them and left.

"You okay?" Lin asked Yugi.

Yugi smiled. "Now I am, thanks," he said.

"Whatever," she said and walked off again though Yugi saw she was blushing slightly.

Yugi watched her a moment before he made up his mind. Accepting the drink Jounouchi handed him, he went to do what he had in mind.

…

They were gathered around now ready to leave the arcade in favor of getting a bite to eat. Ryou, Lin, and Anzu were waiting as Jounouchi, Honda, and Yugi made their way toward them. Yugi was holding what looked like a cute, little white kitty plushy. Ryou couldn't help but look at Lin, who's eyes quickly fixed on the plushy before diverting her gaze away. Once gathered Yugi spoke.

"Lin-san?" he asked meekly.

"What?" was her response.

"I wanted to give you this as thanks, for before," he said and Ryou wondered what he was talking about. Yugi held out the plushy toward her.

Ryou saw Lin blink and blush the slightest shade of pink. Her fingers flexed as she deliberated. Finally, she said, "Sure," and held out her hands to take the plushy. Shortly after this, they left the arcade.

"Did you tell him?" Ryou asked Lin curiously and quietly.

"Of course I didn't," she snapped but she held the plushy tighter against her. Ryou pressed his lips together to keep from laughing. Nothing stood between her and a plushy.

They reached their destination and were seated. Lin smirked when she saw there wasn't room for her. "I'll sit at the table behind you," she said. She felt relieved. Finally, she'd have time to herself.

"I'll go with you," Yugi said promptly. It wasn't right for her to sit all by herself.

"It's fine, I'd rather sit by myself," she said and it was strange to Yugi that she sounded relieved. She took her plushy with her and slid into the table behind them, but Yugi could see the top of her head as he was sitting across from Bakura.

"Is it really okay?" Yugi asked Bakura worriedly.

"She always prefers to sit alone when I have company, just never too far," Bakura answered. "If I know her, she's probably already listening to music," he added.

As they waited for their food to come, Yugi felt increasingly more uneasy that Lin was sitting by herself. Finally, he decided to join her. He scooted out of the seat and went toward her. Her legs were drawn up against her chest, her feet on the seat and she was still holding the plushy to her, he felt happy about that. She indeed had earphones on and she was looking out the window as she bobbed her head to the beat. He tried calling her but she didn't seem to have listened so he tapped her lightly on the shoulder. She seemed startled as her head whipped to look at him, her body tense. He looked at her meekly. She took out an earphone.

"Sorry for startling you," he said quickly.

She shrugged at this. "Why aren't you with them?" she asked gesturing toward the others.

"I felt bad knowing you were here by yourself," he said and slid into the seat across from her.

"I said I was fine, but whatever," she said and shrugged.

They were silent a moment. "You said you liked Duel Monsters, right?" he asked suddenly.

Lin was surprised at this. She vaguely remembered having that conversation with him… like, two weeks ago. "You remembered that?" she asked and raised an eyebrow.

"Well, yeah," Yugi answered. It had only been two weeks ago. "I like playing it too," he said with a smile.

"Do you?" was all she asked.

"I do, I always carry my deck," he said.

She snorted. "That's probably why Ryou told me to bring mine. Oh, that sneak, when we get home…" she trailed off and her eyes were narrowed at the window.

"I hope you're not too hard on him," Yugi said worriedly.

She sighed. "If only I could. He's my soft spot, so I'm never that hard on him," she answered with a shake of her head.

"You two are really very close," he commented.

She watched Yugi for a moment. "Well, yeah, we've been friends for years," she told him and returned to looking out the window.

"Really?" Yugi asked surprised.

"Well, yeah. If we hadn't been we wouldn't act like that with each other. A lot of people think he's my boyfriend. As much as I don't encourage it, I don't discourage it because it helps keep unwanted people away," she explained.

Yugi felt quite relieved to hear this, that she was available, though he wasn't sure why since he didn't think he'd actually try anything. At this time their food came.

"I hope you don't mind if I ask to have some ketchup," she said looking at the waiter closely.

The waiter blushed. "I don't mind, for someone so pretty," he said. Yugi blinked. Was the waiter flirting with Lin? Well, he was sure Lin would put him in his place.

She smiled at the waiter. "Really? You're pretty cute yourself," she told him as he indeed gave her some ketchup. Yugi was surprised again. She was flirting back? But… she was the one who played the 'mean girl' role, as she put it, to keep the boys away.

"It's a natural-born talent," the waiter answered with a grin.

She smirked, her eyes very set on him. "I'm certainly glad that's the case. I know what it's like to have such burden too," she said. He laughed before telling them to enjoy their meal and left. Yugi was confused and maybe even a little upset. He was hoping she didn't realize it. "You look surprised," she commented as she pulled her tray toward her. She set her plushy next to her.

"Well, after what you did at school…" he trailed off.

She shrugged. "There's nothing wrong with having a little fun. I usually do that when I go out to eat. I only flirt with cute boys I'm sure I won't remember or see again. I mean, he must have to serve dozens of tables, if I came here in a week he probably wouldn't remember me. It's different at school since I'll be seeing those boys every day," she explained.

"Oh, I guess you're right," was all he said. They ate mostly in silence, with a comment here and there. Since there wasn't much conversation, they finished before their friends, so they put their trays aside.

"Well, they're going to take a while," she said with a sigh. She sat properly in her seat and picked up her plushy, holding it to her.

Hesitantly, Yugi asked, "Would you like to play Duel Monsters with me?" he asked.

She blinked at him and seemed to think about it. "Why not?" she allowed and fished in her pocket for her deck. She seemed to turn off her music device. She set her plushy on her legs and took off her earphones before they traded decks. As they shuffled the waiter came back. He took their trays.

"Maybe I'll see you around," the waiter told her smiling.

She shrugged and smirked. "I'd have to think about it, what with having someone as cute as you working here," she said and her and Yugi traded decks again. The waiter watched this and blushed before walking away with the trays. This girl was really pretty, he probably wouldn't see her again in a long time though and he probably wouldn't remember her anyway, although he doubted he wouldn't.

Lin and Yugi drew their cards and he was surprised when she allowed him to go first. Like those other times, she got into her game-mode, so he thought he might as well do the same. A long time later, though it didn't feel very long to them, their friends were standing around them. They blinked, being taken out of their trance.

"Well, I guess we'll have to duel one time we have much more time to spare," she sighed looking regretfully at their cards.

"Yeah, guess you're right," Yugi said dejectedly as they gathered their cards.

"So, who had more points?" Jounouchi asked.

"Well, he did, but I was about to play a magic card to raise the attack points of my monster. If it had worked I would have lowered his points so we'd be even," she explained.

"It would've worked too," Yugi said and they slid out of their seats and they put away their decks.

"Well, that's good to know," she answered dully.

…

They were near the park when Bakura stopped. "There's a Ferris Wheel here?" he asked with wide eyes.

"Huh? Oh yeah, it's been there for a long time," Jounouchi answered.

"Do you want to go?" Anzu asked.

"Can we?" Bakura asked with bright, wide eyes looking unblinkingly at the Ferris Wheel.

The boys laughed. "Of course we can," Honda answered. And so, they went in that direction. Since it was already about to be sunset, there wasn't a line.

"Hey Bakura-kun, can I go on the ride with you?" Anzu asked.

Bakura smiled. "Okay," he allowed.

"I'll get on," Yugi said with a shrug.

"Hey, why don't you two go together?" Anzu suggested.

Jounouchi and Honda looked at each other. "We'll just wait here," they both agreed and shrugged.

"Lin, won't you get on?" Bakura asked with big eyes.

"I don't-"

"Please?" he asked with puppy eyes.

"Why you cheating little – okay, fine," she allowed with a roll of her eyes.

Lin and Yugi got into a compartment and sat across from each other and Bakura and Anzu got on another.

As the ride began Lin held her plushy to her and looked out the window. "The park looks nice at this time," she said casually.

Yugi smiled though she didn't see it. "Yeah, it does," he said. After a pause he said more nervously. "Can I ask you a question?"

She raised an eyebrow and looked at him. "I don't see why not," she answered and shrugged.

"How did… you and Bakura-kun meet and become so close?" he asked hesitantly.

She didn't say anything for a moment and Yugi thought and she wouldn't answer. "Ryou took a strange liking to you and your friends," she said and paused before adding, "So I don't think he'd mind too much if I told you… but in case he does…" she trailed off warningly.

He smiled. "I won't tell," he assured.

She looked away from him and out the window. "Ryou and I have always been in the same class, since we were kids, but we never interacted unless necessary. My father had died when I was very young, so I was left with my mother and older brother. My mother worked long hours in order to support my brother and I. When I was about eight years old, I began going to the cemetery more frequently than before. I saw Ryou there once with his little sister… they were visiting their mother's grave," she said looking faraway.

"I didn't know Bakura-kun had a sister and that you had a brother," Yugi said surprised.

She didn't make any movement or sound to indicate she had heard him. "I remember that it was there when I went to him first. I spoke to him a little and met his little sister," she said with a slight smile. "She was the sweetest girl I'd ever met. All smiles. She looked a lot like Ryou. Anyway, the next morning, I remember he came to my seat and said hi, so I replied. We spoke then too. After about a month of talking we decided that if my brother could make it, the four of us would go to the cemetery. We would all go to Ryou's mum's grave and then we'd all go to my dad's grave. It worked out nicely. My brother was, after all, very good with kids," she said.

"Was?" Yugi asked not liking where this was going.

She ignored this too. "We build a friendship and soon our parents met. In all truth both were always busy, but to my mum it was a big help that I had Ryou and his sister. She'd know that I would be at his house. We were really close… my brother was first," she said the last part quietly.

Yugi looked at her surprised at the tone change. "What?"

"My brother was hit by a car… he died at the hospital," she said quietly. "I guess… it strengthened my friendship with Ryou and his sister… to know they were as distraught as me… them and their father were the only other people at the funeral besides my mother and I. As little kids would have it, Ryou's sister was the one to suggest we write letters to my brother, and so the three of us would do that. After that, I slowly lost my other friends, since I'd stopped hanging out with them, but I didn't mind it because I had Ryou and his sister. Sometimes I'd stay over at his house and sometimes they'd stay over at mine. Our parents knew where they would find us when they came home, either at my home or his. His sister looked up to me as her older sister. I learned to bare the loss. That's probably how I began to get all snappy at people who made fun of Ryou and I began standing up for him. It was going all right… but then it was her turn," she said and again her tone was quiet.

"Her… turn?" Yugi asked and he knew what was coming.

"It hurt so much… like my brother had just died all over again. Again, only us two and our parents were there for the funeral. Since she had been the one to suggest we write letters for my brother, we both decided to write letters to her. It seemed so appropriate. That year was the worst but we managed by relying on each other," she said and sighed. Yugi saw her blink hard a couple of times. "Two years after that… my mother was involved in an accident at work… and… she died," she said and last part was said tonelessly. "So, Ryou's father took me in. We've been together since. And I'm sure he's told you why we've been going from school to school," she said and shrugged.

Yugi finally found his voice. "He said that when he played games with his friends… they ended up losing consciousness…" he said.

"And so, I go with him and I protect him from people who make fun of him or dare to hurt him… he's all I have since we don't see his father often… I can't lose him," she said still looking out the window.

"I didn't know…" Yugi said softly.

Her tone was her usual one. "Of course you didn't. If you did, you wouldn't have asked. Now, I remind you, one word about this-"

"I know. And I tell you again that I won't tell," he assured.

"Just a warning," she said and shrugged.

Right when they were about to reach the end of the ride he asked hesitantly, "Would you ever consider having friends other than Bakura-kun?"

"Not by my choice," was her response as the ride was finished. She allowed him to get off first before following.

After that they began walking home. Thanks to Yugi's friends and Bakura the group was never silent. At the parting point they all said their goodbyes, with Lin simply nodding at them holding her plushy to her.

~.~.~.

**There you go, Lin's past. Hope you review! It will give me feedback/incentive so I can keep writing other stories that come to mind. You're lucky I already had this finished.**


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER! I do not own the Yugioh anime, characters, manga, or anything related! Just in case, Abridged series made by LittleKuriboh!**

**A/N:** I _did_ warn you people about a rape scene, didn't I? I believe I did. Well, this is it. Um… not much to say except sorry for the OOCness and anything else you find apologizing-worthy.

~.~.~.

It was about a month after that day out. Lin had been acting strangely, more than usual and she had taken to leaving during lunch, leaving Ryou with his friends. This time it was no different. It had been quiet, those awful girls hadn't done anything and the boys hadn't done anything either, so it was pretty calm. As they conversed Ryou suddenly stood and he seemed to be concentrated on something.

"Bakura-kun?" Yugi asked uncertainly.

"Something's wrong with Lin," he said and just as suddenly left. The others were hard on his heels. Yugi hoped Bakura was wrong and Lin was all right.

Lin at the moment was hoping Bakura would come bursting through the school roof doors to come save her. Here's where she'd been coming for the whole month as she tried to sort out what the hell she was feeling for that small boy with the Puzzle, ever since that stupid day with the plushy. Nobody aside from Ryou (or his father, sister, or her own family… that she'd had) had ever given her one… and now that boy had. Gods! She wasn't even sure if Yugi was his name, she didn't even know his friend's names! Also, she couldn't seem to detach herself from that blasted plushy when she was in her room! It was obnoxiously annoying!

So, because of those thoughts distracting her, she hadn't noticed these people following her. There were three boys, the one she had been rude to her that first day (because he had been rude to her first), two others restraining her, and those three awful girls (the ones she had gotten into a fight with) watching. From what Lin had gathered they had made a deal, although, who would agree to do something this sick was beyond her. This had never happened before! Nobody had ever gone this far! Out of all the schools they'd been to, this had never happened! After all, who would be stupid enough to try to rape her on school grounds… but they had thought it out well. She was gagged at the moment, being restrained; this boy was about getting ready to rape her and these stupid girls would be watching… she really did want Bakura to come save her, she could talk him into letting them go, she just needed him _now_.

The boy held her chin painfully so she was forced to look at him. Lin was tired of struggling but she wouldn't give in. Her hair was plastered to her forehead and her clothes were obviously frumpy and her face had marks where she'd been hit. Still, she didn't back down, they wouldn't see her cry, they wouldn't! "You thought you got the best of me that day, did you? I'll show you… I'll break you… and I'll do it in front of the people you'd least want to have watching," he said and she squirmed and tried to kick as she felt his other hand on her thigh, trying to ride up her skirt. Stupid uniforms that left nothing to the imagination! He backhanded her as his goonies held her even tighter. Those stupid girls had already had their time to taunt and mock her, so now they were just watching and laughing. She felt his lips at her neck as his hands groped her. Lin closed her eyes tightly and tried again to squirm and kick. Getting backhanded was way better than being kissed involuntarily and groped. She tried to scream as well, but it came out muffled due to the gag, but she didn't give up, she refused to. She kept in her mind that it wasn't over yet until he achieved his goal… she told herself firmly that he wouldn't, she couldn't allow him that control, any control, over her. This time she was slapped and again stilled, and now she felt his tongue on her neck. That was utterly disgusting! How dare he do something so gross?

"What the _fuck_ do you think you're doing? Get your hands off of her you son of a bitch!" came an extremely angry and dangerous voice. Everything stopped and Lin looked over the boy's shoulder to see Ryou… no, not Ryou, but Bakura there… with the boy of the Puzzle and his friends… except it wasn't the boy of the Puzzle anymore… it was the spirit. Lin never knew she'd be seeing this, both spirits in control of their host's bodies and not going for each other's necks. Lin was thoroughly glad, she knew she'd be all right now… and she got to see the spirit of the Puzzle, which was an added bonus. Bakura was the first to act, he lunged at the boy who'd been molesting her and the other spirit went toward the ones grabbing her. Now distracted, she was able to pull away. She landed on her knees and was vaguely aware of the fact the other girls were running away, the cowards! Jounouchi and Honda also got involved.

Lin took the gag out of her mouth leaving it around her neck and she coughed. She massaged her jaw, which was sore after clamping her teeth tightly against the gag. She felt two pairs of hands and she was startled to see the brunet girl and the spirit of the Puzzle with her.

"Are you all right?" the brunet asked.

"Just peachy," Lin muttered sarcastically. She didn't realize she was shaking a little until the spirit held her more firmly. Reluctantly (or maybe not so much) she said, "…Thank you… for coming…" she trailed off and looked down.

"Don't worry about that now," the spirit told her and she wasn't sure why she felt so… safe. She suddenly remembered something else. Her head shot up but she looked neither at the spirit of the Puzzle or at the brunet girl. Her eyes lifted to look at Bakura. Understanding that she needed to stand, they both helped her up, though she didn't need the help. The boy Bakura had taken on, the one who was going to do all those horrible things to her, had just fallen, but Bakura looked beyond angry and didn't look like he was going to be finishing any time soon. Jounouchi and Honda had just finished with their boys and went to hold off Bakura, only to end up being forcefully pushed away.

"Bakura, stop!" she yelled when he didn't stop hurting the boy. He seemed on the verge of unconsciousness.

"Nobody gets away with doing something like this to _you_," he hissed but he wasn't looking at Lin.

"Bakura, please!" she shouted. At the moment even she was afraid of getting too close. "Bakura, please… I'm the one who needs your attention now!" she hollered at him and stomped her foot.

There was a moment of stillness where Bakura stopped and looked at her. Her usually composed face was red with hand marks and she looked on the verge of tears, something that was so rare now for her. Then, without warning, the tears just filled her eyes and began falling down her cheeks. Bakura didn't move, only stared at her, and after another pause she ran up to him, wrapping her arms around his neck and she hid her face in the crook of his neck. He still wasn't moving so she pulled him closer to her and she whispered, "Please Bakura, not now. _I_ need you now." That got a reaction from him. He placed his arms around her and after another lengthy pause he buried his own face in the crook of her neck.

Everyone was surprised at this. Anzu, Jounouchi, and Honda for their part were utterly struck and surprised at the fact Bakura, the quiet boy they had come to know, was capable of doing something like this, something so cold and angry. They were also surprised that she was calling him 'Bakura' when she always called him by his given name. Now, the spirit of the Puzzle and his host, who had now switched back, were aware of the dark aura around the white-haired youth now and knew it wasn't the boy they knew. They also felt that this spirit was cruel and cold-hearted, that he wasn't afraid of getting his hands bloody and that he could kill anyone without a second thought. This is why they were startled to see he was being surprisingly gentle with this girl, this poor girl who had been about to be sexually abused because she'd been trying to protect her friend.

"You're pathetic," he muttered against her.

She made a choked, amused sound at this but didn't say anything. After a moment she said quietly, "You're always there…"

"Always," was all he said. He wouldn't tell her this, but he'd hunt that boy and that girl later and trap their souls in the Shadow Realm. He wouldn't bother with the cronies, but those two… how dare they? Getting into fights with Lin wasn't new, so he let it pass when it happened here too… but to dare to hurt something of his… no, they would pay dearly for that… Lin just wouldn't know about it.

After everything had calmed down and Bakura was again the soft spoken teen they knew, they went to the principal's office to recount what had happened. Needless to say, she was awfully glad those girls and boys had been expelled for being accomplices, carrying out the task (or being about to), or planning it. Unfortunately, for being involved (counting previous accounts – as in Lin fighting the girls), they were each suspended for three days. For the first time, Lin really felt like she wasn't alone, not just because she had Ryou and Bakura, but because there were other people there for her. Those people she hadn't acknowledged as friends, but only as friends of Ryou, had been there for _her_, had supported _her_, had helped _her_. She even felt stronger as she felt them there and held Ryou's hand just a little tighter.

~.~.~.

Two months had passed since that fateful day and everything had calmed down. Lin hadn't had a drastic change, but she _had_ changed. She didn't leave during lunch anymore and she spoke more to the group and actually tried to pay attention to the conversation. She had even bothered to learn their names. Now she didn't have to be coaxed into going to places with them, though it helped that Ryou denied to go most of the time mostly because he was afraid Bakura would make an unexpected appearance.

At the moment Ryou was in the kitchen putting away the groceries. It had been his turn to go shopping after all. Even before he'd left he'd been curious as to what Lin was up to. She'd been on the computer but she hadn't been doing anything of the usual stuff. She had looked a little frustrated but she'd definitely looked agitated when he had come back. She'd now been on the computer for several hours, which was strange considering she wasn't reading manga online or watching anime. Ryou hurried over when he heard a loud bang coming from her room.

"Lin, what's wrong?" he asked concerned when he found her breathing hard, standing from her chair with her hands braced against the desk.

"I just don't get it!" she exclaimed angrily and banged her fists on the desk.

He went over to her and tried to calm her down. He took her hand while patting her back with the other hand and he led her to the bed. "What's wrong?" he asked as he watched her take the plushy she'd become so attached to, the one Yugi had given her. She held it to her.

"Motou, that's what," was the frustrated response.

Ryou frowned. "What about Yugi-kun?" he asked confused.

"What about him? What do you mean: what about him? Everything, that's what! I've been over it dozens of times, I looked at it over and over and I don't get it!" she said and ran a hand through her hair.

"I'm afraid you're going to have to explain yourself better, Lin," Ryou admitted. As far as he knew, Yugi hadn't done anything to upset Lin, in fact, they seemed to get along the best.

"I did some hacking-"

"Lin, you said you weren't going to do that anymore," Ryou chastised.

"But this is important!" she insisted.

Ryou sighed. "Okay, go on," he allowed.

"So, I did some hacking… and I just don't understand! He's an unremarkable boy! He's an average boy with average grades who lives an average life! Okay, so maybe he got picked on before… but now he doesn't because he has friends! He's so… unimpressive! I just… don't get it…" she trailed off with a glare at the ground.

Ryou smiled at this. Sometimes his friend was really dense. "So, you don't understand how you ended up liking such a plain boy?" he asked.

"Yes! Exactly! …Wait, what? No, no, no, no!" she said. She held the plushy tighter to her before she realized what she was doing. With a glare she put it aside and grabbed another plushy to take its place.

"Yes, you do like him. Being in denial will only make it more confusing for you, so just admit it already. You like Motou Yugi," Ryou said bluntly.

She was about to protest but kept her mouth shut when she caught sight of Ryou's knowing look. "Okay, maybe a little," she admitted reluctantly.

"A little?" Ryou asked with a raised eyebrow and a shake of his head. "Lin…"

"Okay, I like him! A lot! There? Happy?" she exclaimed as she held her plushy tighter and she looked at her computer screen with a glare.

"Yes, I am. Now, I'm assuming you looked into his records and stuff, right?" he asked.

"Well… yeah," she admitted.

Ryou sighed. "Did you ever think about looking at the boy himself before analyzing this in the most detached way ever?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

She blinked at him looking confused. "The boy himself?"

"Yes, like his talents… the reason or reasons you like him," Ryou explained. He didn't think he'd ever be having this conversation with Lin of all people.

"That's just it! He's plain, he doesn't _have_ any remarkable talent!" she insisted. "I don't have any reason to like him!"

Ryou gave her a 'you can't fool me' look. "Are you sure?"

She was silent a moment and she looked thoughtful. "Well… I suppose I might like playing games with him… he's a real challenge… but I mean, you are too," she admitted reluctantly and shrugged.

"You know, I don't know about that, but you're right, he's pretty good at games, I bet you have a lot of fun playing games with him," Ryou encouraged. He'd seen it, the way both of them became so concentrated, they were both really good.

"Well… I guess I kind of do… but that doesn't mean anything," she added quickly.

"There has to be something else you like about him though," Ryou pointed out. Although, knowing Lin, that was a bit difficult to say. She had the strangest tastes after all. Seriously, who would associate plushies with Lin? Only Ryou, who really knew her.

Again, she was silent, this silence lasted longer than the last and when she spoke it was even more reluctant than before. "Well, he has to have _something_, I mean, he _is_ the owner of the Millennium Puzzle," she said.

Ryou sighed. Leave it to Lin to come up with something like that. "Isn't there anything that makes you feel… funny in a good way?"

She looked at him confused. "Funny… in a good way," she repeated slowly and she seemed to look thoughtful at this question. Of course, she would always understand what he was trying to say, they'd just been together too long. "_He_ makes me feel funny in a good way," she finally said. "As in, when I look at him," she clarified though it wasn't necessary.

Ryou bit down a laugh. "Wow, you have it bad," he commented casually.

She glared at him before looking away. "Shut up," she snapped.

He shook his head. "Okay, so when you look at him… be more specific. There has to be certain traits you like more than others," he reasoned.

"Why does it matter? Can't we just let it go?" Lin said sounding frustrated.

"No, you have to come to terms with this, you have to be comfortable with this," he insisted. "Just answer Lin," he said when she was about to protest.

She was silent once again. "I like it when he smiles at me… and his expression… when he's confused," she said at long last.

Ryou again tried not to laugh. She never had issues flirting with guys she didn't know so he never thought she'd have problems if she had a crush on someone. She was making this too hard. "What about his personality?" he dug in a little deeper.

Now she looked like she really didn't want to answer, but she didn't protest. She looked thoughtful and there was again another long silence. "He's just so childish and naïve and innocent sometimes! It should be utterly annoying… but it's not," she said frustrated and ran a hand through her hair.

"And he's thoughtful, kind, small and cute, right?" Ryou added tentatively.

"… I guess," was the muttered response but her lips quirked. Ryou knew she was weak for small and cute.

Ryou smiled. "Well, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

"It is," she said quietly.

Ryou paused. He looked at her with a slight frown. "It's okay to like someone Lin," he tried to assure.

"I know… I just… I didn't want it to be him!" she exclaimed again sounding frustrated and she stood and began pacing in front of Ryou.

Now he was confused. "There's nothing wrong with you liking Yugi-kun," he again tried to assure.

"Yes! Yes, there is! Everything's wrong with me liking him! I didn't want this to happen… I didn't want it to be him!" she exclaimed in an agitated manner.

"Why not? What's wrong with him?" Ryou now asked.

"Everything! Bakura hates him and the Spirit of the Puzzle! Don't you remember what Bakura told me? I'm the reincarnation of his younger sister! I can't be liking his arch rival!" she exclaimed as if this should be obvious.

Ryou blinked and took a moment to process this information. Yes, he remembered that. It was when he had first been aware of the spirit. All he could do was watch helplessly as the spirit used his body. Lin had been the only one unafraid of him, refusing to leave Ryou's side, to leave him alone with the spirit. Because of this, Bakura had challenged her to a Shadow Game. It had been drawn out and long, but she had won that game. He had acknowledged her win by allowing her to stay by Ryou's side and she protected him in the way the spirit didn't. Bakura had, however, warned her to not interfere in his search for the Millennium Items… although he had allowed her (though he wouldn't acknowledge it) to interfere in some Shadow Games, where she pleaded for him not to do something rash. Of course, since she usually did this by telling him people might suspect, it usually worked. One particular time she had been in a real problem and Ryou had been surprised when the spirit took over his body and helped her out of it. He had reluctantly, and snappingly, told her about being the reincarnation of his sister (that she even acted like her). Lin had took that to heart, which is why she was able to get along well with the spirit. Of course, they got into fights, very serious ones including Shadow Games sometimes, but overall, he was rather protective of her as only a big brother could be, although if brought up he always denied it.

"Calm down and think about what you're saying, Lin," Ryou tried. He patted the place next to him and she reluctantly took a seat. "The spirit's arch rival isn't Yugi-kun… it's the Spirit of the Puzzle. The reason Bakura speaks about destroying him is because if Yugi-kun is destroyed the Spirit is helpless… it's the same with the Spirit of the Ring and I, you know that."

"But that's the thing! It's like he hates him anyway because of it! He may think about Motou as a container, but he happens to hate that very container anyway! I just… I can't do that to Bakura," she replied.

So, this was what was giving Lin such a hard time. It wasn't the crush itself, it was that she was torn between Yugi and Bakura. Poor Lin. "Lin… he chose his own life, you should do the same, and pick whatever makes you happy," he said quietly.

"I thought I'd be able to know what that was without thinking twice… but now I'm not so sure," she answered dejectedly.

"Well, there's no reason to rush things. Think it over and give yourself some time," he suggested.

She looked down and nodded. She put the plushy she'd been holding aside and hugged Ryou. "Thank you… for understanding," she said.

Ryou smiled and hugged back. "I'll always try to understand," was his response.

~.~.~.

**And now you know why Bakura's so darn nice to her! Awww, 'Kura! Lol. Um, anyway, please review! Hope you like the next chapter!**


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER! I do not own Yugioh or anything related! Just in case, Abridged series done by LittleKuriboh!**

**A/N: **Um… hope you have as much fun reading this as I had writing it! Forgive the OOCness and anything apologizing-worthy! Onward!

~.~.~.

Four months had passed before Lin had come to terms with her feelings for the small boy of the Puzzle. She could admit to Ryou and herself that she liked Motou Yugi without feeling too bad about it. Ryou had been right, Bakura had chosen his own life, so she should be able to choose hers. She felt relieved now that she had come to terms with it, though in all truth, she wasn't sure how it helped besides that. It wasn't like she was going to tell him that she liked him and whether he returned those feelings or not, she didn't know. Even if she had accepted her feelings for the boy, she would feel more relieved if he didn't return those feelings, it would mean she didn't need to worry at all.

"Lin-san, are you all right?" a voice snapped her out of her thoughts as they walked. They were all walking home, they'd go their separate ways at the parting point.

"Huh?" she said and focused on the speaker. Just her luck, it was Yugi himself. "Fine," she said and shrugged. She might like him, but she never displayed it… it was a lot easier than she thought it'd be. Though sometimes she was reminded of Ryou whenever Yugi did or said something.

"Are you sure? You seem distracted lately," the brunet girl said.

Lin shrugged again. "I'm fine, Masaki-san. Nothing to worry about," she said. As much as she didn't mind hanging out with them, their friendship talks (at least from the girl's part) could get pretty annoying.

"Lin-san?" Yugi asked again, though his tone was different. Lin didn't think too much of it.

Yugi slowed his pace, so she did too, since he seemed to want to talk to her. "What's up?" she asked and glanced at him as they walked.

"I bought a new video game last weekend," he told her a little hesitantly.

She was a little confused at this. "Cool," was all she said to this. What else what she supposed to say?

"I was wondering… if you wanted to come over… and play it with me…" he trailed off. Yugi was feeling nervous. He did want to play that game with her… but he hadn't told his other friends about it… he wouldn't say it but… he wanted it to be… a date.

Lin didn't say anything right away. "What about the others?" she asked.

Yugi wasn't prepared for this question. He bit his lower lip for a moment. "I wanted to play it with you first… you're really good at games… I thought it'd be fun," he said a little nervously. Knowing Lin, she probably caught on to his nervousness, but he hoped she didn't call him out for it.

Again she didn't reply right away. "Sounds fun," she said.

"Would… Saturday be all right… maybe around midday…?" Yugi tried.

She seemed thoughtful. "Well, okay. It gives me time, since I have to go buy groceries in the morning," she said and gave an assertive nod.

"Great!" Yugi said feeling relieved. "Thanks for wanting to come," he added with a smile toward her.

She glanced at him and her lips quirked. "How can I turn down the invitation of playing a game?" she asked sounding amused.

~.~.~.

Saturday, early in the morning, found Lin in bed sleeping lightly. She was holding her kitty plushy Yugi had given her and plushies were near her pillow. Ryou watched her sleep from her doorway. He could swear he was more excited about her date with Yugi than she was. She insisted it wasn't a date and that they were only going to be playing a game but Ryou knew better. He was even more excited when she'd told him that Yugi had told her his grandpa would be away. Lin said that since she had agreed to go, there shouldn't be any reason to go back on her word just because his grandpa wasn't going to be there. Which meant her and Yugi would be completely alone.

He decided to wake her up. Really? How can she sleep? He grinned at himself and ran at the bed and he jumped on it, startling her awake. "Morning Lin!" he said before he went on his knees watching as she sat up really fast.

"Wha'?" she asked and her eyes were sleepy. She rubbed the sleep out of eyes and yawned. "What the hell Ryou?" she asked sleepily, setting her plushy down and stretching her upper body.

"How can you be sleeping when you have a date today?" Ryou asked excitedly.

"Easy, watch," she said and laid back down in bed, throwing the covers over her. "And it's not a date!" she exclaimed.

Ryou threw the covers off of her with a grin. "You're not going back to sleep," he said quickly.

She groaned. "Why not?" she asked and sat up again shooting Ryou a look.

"You have to get ready," he insisted.

She made an irritated sound and looked at her bedside clock. "It's seven in the freakin' morning. I don't have to meet Motou until midday and I wasn't planning to go grocery shopping until later in the morning," Lin said and sighed.

"Oh, it's okay, I don't mind going grocery shopping, it's okay. You should take that time to get ready," Ryou said with a smile.

"Time to get ready? I can get ready in ten minutes. Ryou, I'm going to be playing a video game with him, not going to a dance. And no, I don't want you to do the shopping, I can do it myself," she snapped. "Now, if you would please be kind enough to get out of my room…" she trailed off with a significant look.

"Don't go back to sleep," he told her.

"Okay, okay, I won't, just get out," she said and threw a plushy at him.

He caught it and laughed. "Okay, I'm leaving," he said and got off the bed and walked toward the door. He turned around. "Here, catch," he said throwing the plushy back at her. It landed on the bed in front of her. He smiled and closed the door.

Ryou busied himself around the kitchen making breakfast. "What'd you make?" he heard Lin ask as she came into the kitchen.

"Do you even have to ask at this point?" he returned and he handed her the plate containing her breakfast.

"Guess not," she said. They sat at the table.

"Is that what you're going to wear to the store?" he asked.

"Uh, yeah?"

"But not with Yugi-kun right?"

"Um, why not?" she said and looked down at her attire. She was wearing jogging pants and a plain t-shirt.

"You're not wearing pajamas to Yugi-kun's," Ryou said plainly.

"Hey, these aren't sleeping clothes I'll have you know! And I can go to his place however I want," she said with a frown.

"Yeah, but not that," he told her.

She made an annoyed sound. "You're impossible," she muttered and they continued with their breakfast.

After breakfast and brushing her teeth Lin pocketed her wallet and put on her shoes. "I'll be back," she said.

…

Lin placed the groceries on the counter and began putting them away when Ryou came into the kitchen. "Here, I'll put them away, you go get ready," Ryou offered.

"It's okay, I can do it," Lin said with a frown.

"I know you can but you should go get ready," Ryou said.

"Ryou it's only-"

"Just go Lin, I'll do this," Ryou rolled his eyes and ushered her out of the kitchen.

"Okay, okay, sheesh," she said and thought it'd be best to go take a nice, long bath before getting ready. She had plenty of time after all.

…

"Let me help you, Ry," she offered some time later, after her bath and a change of clothes.

He looked at her, satisfied with her new attire. He was glad she had changed though he thought she could do better. "Nah, why don't you go on and head toward Yugi-kun's house?" he asked.

"Ryou, I'll get there too early if I go now," she told him.

He took her by the arm and almost dragged her toward the door. He picked up her shoes, opened the door, pushed her out of it and placed her shoes outside. "And don't come back until a lot later. Have a good time Lin," he said and closed the door and locked it.

He heard her pound on the door. "Bakura Ryou, you open this door right now!" she hollered and banged on the door.

"No, I won't open it, now go," he called back.

He heard more banging before it was silent. After five minutes of silence he cautiously opened the door, nobody was there. He closed the door with a smile. She'd never really shown interest in a boy as she had with Yugi, and she'd never gone out on a date, this was her first. He hoped everything went well.

…

Lin cursed Ryou to the very depths of the Shadow Realm. That sneak! She tried to walk slower but still, she was standing in front of the Game Shop earlier than accorded. She felt rather embarrassed at this, he'd probably think she was desperate, she'd have to explain what had happened. The door to the shop had the closed sign, so she knocked loudly hoping Yugi would hear her. She knocked again, a little harder.

Soon Yugi came into view and he looked surprised to see her. She stuffed her hands in her pockets. "Hi, I wasn't expecting you now," he said apologetically.

"I wasn't expecting to come so soon, but Ryou locked me out," she said with a sigh.

Yugi blinked at her with his pretty amethyst eyes. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that Ryou's gone insane," she said with a shake of her head as he led her to the living room. Lin was amazed at the place. It was a Game Shop but also that's where Yugi and his grandpa lived, it was a cozy, small little place. "Sorry to intrude," she said and took off her shoes.

He smiled. "It's all right," he said and added, "What happened?" and they sat on the couch. Yugi was rather excited to have her over and more so because even when she knew his grandpa wouldn't be home she still said she'd be coming over.

"Like I said, something's wrong with Ryou. He startled me awake at seven in the morning and wouldn't let me go back to sleep. He told me I needed to get ready and offered to go grocery shopping even though it's my turn. Then, I was wearing jogging pants and a shirt and he insisted I wouldn't be coming over to your house dressed like that. So, then, I told him I'd go grocery shopping so I did. When I came home he insisted that he put away the groceries and that I go get ready. I agreed only because I didn't want an argument. And then… when I was ready I offered to help him in the kitchen. And you know what that little sneak did?" she asked and huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"What did he do?" Yugi asked curiously and a little amused.

"He dragged me out of my own apartment, and threw my shoes out before locking me out. I banged on the door and told him to let me in but he wouldn't, so I came here. And he's under the impression this is a date. I tell you, he's gone insane," she said and she made a face.

Yugi laughed. "That's pretty harsh of Bakura-kun," he commented.

"You think? He's never done that before," she said and shook her head.

Yugi also shook his head and stood. "I'm sorry for not offering before, would you like some tea?"

"No, it's okay. I know I'm early, so if there's something you need to do it's okay," she said with a shrug.

"I hope you can excuse me for a moment," he told her.

She rolled her eyes at him. "You don't have to be so polite in your own home. It's just us," she said and shrugged.

He gave a nervous laugh. "Yeah," was all he said before excusing himself again and leaving the living room. Yugi closed his bedroom door and sighed as he blushed ten shades of red. So, Bakura had realized this was a date and she hadn't? He wasn't exactly sure what to think of that. And… Bakura seemed a lot more excited if he'd gone to such lengths as to lock her out of her own apartment just so that she could get here. And… well, he did have to admit, even though she was dressed simply in jeans and a button up shirt, she looked really cute and pretty. Yugi blushed at this too. He paced his room feeling nervous. Maybe he shouldn't have done this… what if he ended up messing up somehow?

'_Aibou, you should calm down,'_ Yami said to him.

"It's hard, she's right there… and we're the only ones home," Yugi said nervously.

'_You'll be fine Yugi. Just be yourself, like you've always been,'_ his yami encouraged.

"But it's not the same because we're alone… maybe it wasn't such a good idea after all," Yugi said dejectedly.

'_Nonsense aibou, it was a great idea. You'll get to know her better, isn't that what you wanted?'_ Yami asked him.

Yugi was silent a moment before he sighed and straightened. "You're right Yami," he said and he sounded determined.

'_Well, good luck Yugi, if you need me just call,'_ his yami said and then Yugi knew his mou hitori no boku had gone to his soul room.

Yugi bit his lip. "I'll do this," he said. And it was true, he'd get to know her better. He calmed down and left his room. When he walked into the living room she was sitting on the floor with her knees drawn up and her arms around them. She looked faraway, like she was daydreaming, or thinking. "Lin-san?" he called softly, so as not to startle her.

Her eyes focused immediately and she looked at him. "Hey," was all she said.

He smiled and hoped he didn't look as nervous as he felt. "Ready?"

Her lips quirked. "Sure thing, whenever you are," she said.

Yugi plugged in the system and then inserted the game. Then he handed her a controller. "Do you want to be on the same team with me?" he asked a little hesitantly before they picked their characters.

She thought about this. "Sure, why not," she said. Yugi noticed she let him pick his character first before picking a character that would complement his. Well, at least she wasn't opposed to teamwork.

When they began Yugi felt a little self-conscious, but as the game progressed she was so engrossed in it that she wasn't noticing anything besides the game itself, and he relaxed. They really did make a pretty good team and they gained a lot of points. She was actually a very strategic player and sometimes they didn't even need to speak to know what to do. It was a lot of fun playing games with her because she was so willing and so into whatever game they played, just like him. They played for four hours nonstop, but neither seemed to notice how much time had gone by. When it was over, Yugi couldn't believe they had finished the video game in one sitting, in just four hours, but he felt so accomplished and excited about it!

"I can't believe we finished it!" Yugi exclaimed happily with a wide smile and looked at her.

He was surprised when she smiled at him. The only times he'd seen her smile were rare and were usually directed at Bakura. But now she was smiling at him. He tried to fight down a blush but wasn't sure if he managed. "That was fun," she said before adding, "We make a pretty good team."

He smiled. "Yeah, we do," he said and raised his hand for her to high five.

She made an amused sound and raised her own hand to slap his; however, his hand wasn't as close as she originally thought. Because of the way she was sitting, she couldn't keep her balance, so she collided with him and they ended up on the ground in a rather awkward (not to mention compromising) position. They were lucky nobody else was home. She was on top of him with a hand braced against the floor while her other hand was above his head and over his own hand. Should she move her hand just a little more they'd be able to lace their fingers together. They were at eye level and so both looked at each other startled.

Lin stared down at him, at the boy lying underneath her. His body was warm against hers and she could feel his breath on her face, they were that close. His hand was smaller than hers and he overall felt more fragile than herself. He still looked surprised, his mouth was slightly parted and his eyes were wide. She was looking right into his eyes, sparkling, amethyst eyes, set on such a cute face. She was aware of her own heartbeat, frantic and quicker than normal, because she was here, so close to him, to her crush. She wasn't thinking straight, she couldn't, not with him right underneath her, and so she acted according to what she wanted to do instead of what she should have done.

Yugi was staring up at her wondering what she was thinking about. Though he was looking right into her eyes, they were unreadable, and so he didn't know what she was thinking. Although the position they were in was rather awkward, it felt kind of nice too because they were so close. Her hand was over his and because it was clearly smaller than hers it made him all the more aware just how short he really was. Surely she couldn't think of him as anything more than a friend. He could feel his heartbeat pounding against his chest and he was so sure she could feel it too. She hadn't moved at all and they were so close that Yugi was even tempted to lean forward, but he wouldn't… he was too self-conscious for that. He was about to call her name, but he wasn't able to.

Yugi didn't move even when she was the one to close the space between them. Her lips parted slightly before she pressed them to his. He went very still at this new feeling, this was after all his first kiss. Her lips were moving against his and they were soft and warm and she was kissing him gently, almost hesitantly, but her eyes were sliding closed. Yugi was even more surprised when the hand on his went to the side of his face. He decided (though it was hard for him to think when his crush was kissing him like this) that it'd be okay if he kissed her back. He began moving his lips against hers slowly, uncertainly, and since she wasn't pushing him away, he also let his eyes close. The feelings coursing through him seemed to heighten when his eyes had closed, unable to concentrate on anything that wasn't her. He placed his arms around her neck and tugged her closer. Shyly, he opened his mouth a little wider in invitation, but she didn't deepen their kiss.

For Yugi, it didn't feel like any time had passed before she pulled away when the lack of oxygen made her do so. Yugi opened his eyes just in time to see hers open. They were both breathing hard. Her face seemed blank for a moment before her eyes widened and she scrambled off of him looking like she'd done the most horrible thing. Her hand shot to her mouth and she blinked at Yugi. Yugi only sat up and blinked at her before his face began flushing. He was the one who broke the silence. "Lin-san…" he trailed off unsure of what to say in these circumstances since he'd never actually been in this situation before.

This seemed to snap her out of whatever thoughts she was having because she stood up so fast she almost lost her balance. Yugi stood also. She seemed unsure of what to say before she looked away from him. "I should be going home now. Thanks for letting me come over," she said awkwardly and began heading toward the door.

Yugi blinked after her. She couldn't just leave, not like that! He watched her put on her shoes and he finally found his voice. "Wait… please," was all he managed.

She paused but she didn't turn to look at him. "I'm sorry," was all she said before she left. He watched her walk away a moment before he went after her. They were both at the Game Shop's door.

"No, wait, w-we should… talk about this," he managed to say looking up at her with big eyes.

Unfortunately for him, she wasn't looking at him. "No… just forget it happened," she said before she left.

He stared dumbfounded at the door. She left, just like that. And… how did she expect him to just forget about it? He couldn't do that, he couldn't forget something like that. He went back to the living room and paused before he decided it was best if he went to his room. This would change things between them drastically. It'd be awkward and they probably wouldn't talk much to each other anymore. She'd probably return to being on the defensive again, but this time it would only be toward him and not his friends.

His thoughts were interrupted by his yami. _'Aibou, you're… what happened?'_

"Lin-san just left," was his response.

Yami was silent a moment. _'What happened?'_

Yugi took a moment to organize his thoughts. "We kissed," he finally said.

He could feel his yami's surprise. _'I would have thought you'd be happy about that.'_

"I would have been, if it had gone differently," Yugi said dejectedly and he laid down on his bed.

'_What happened?'_ Yami asked again.

Yugi sighed. Yami was probably the only person he could tell. As much as he cared for his friends and was really close to them, this was one of the things he couldn't talk to them about. "Well, it started like an accident I suppose. She lost her balance and we both fell… and she landed on top of me. And then, I don't know exactly how long after that, she kissed me. I thought that since she had been the one to start it, it was okay to kiss back, so I did. But then… she said sorry. I told her that we should talk about it but… she said that… she said to just forget about it… how can she expect me to just forget about it?" Yugi asked feeling a bunch of different emotions at once.

His yami didn't say anything right away. _'Maybe she's embarrassed,'_ he said at long last. Yami elaborated when he realized Yugi was confused. _'Remember she doesn't know you like her.'_

"Well, what am I supposed to do?" Yugi asked, lost as to what he should do. He'd never done any of this before.

'_You could talk to her, that way you'll both be able to sort things out,'_ his yami suggested.

"But she doesn't want to talk about it… or to me," he said with a sigh.

'_I never said you should give her a choice.'_

Yugi blinked at his yami's response. "So, I shouldn't give her a choice?" Well, he supposed that made sense. If he gave her a choice she'd avoid the matter completely, but if he made her face it she'd have no choice but to talk about it. But… "How do I do that?"

'_Pay her a visit at her home. I'm sure Bakura would understand,' _his yami assured.

Yugi thought about this. It made him feel nervous just thinking about it, but Yami was right, that was probably the best course of action he could take. He worried a little about the Spirit of the Ring, but at least he had his own yami, so it'd be okay. Besides, he really needed to talk to her and sort this out before Monday. He gave a determined nod. "Okay, I'll do it… tomorrow. I need to mentally prepare for that," he said and the last part was said sheepishly. He could feel Yami's amusement.

…

Lin knocked loudly on the door and waited for Ryou. Since he had dragged her out, she didn't have her keys or wallet with her. She knocked again impatiently.

Finally, the door opened. "Hey, Lin, how did…" Ryou trailed off when Lin pushed past him and headed right toward her room without speaking. Ryou blinked and flinched slightly when Lin slammed her bedroom door shut. Ryou closed the door and stood there a moment. He supposed it was safe to assume it hadn't gone well… but, she'd been gone for hours. Unless she hadn't been at Yugi's all of that time. He'd never seen Lin so upset and it worried him. He could feel his yami stirring but Ryou knew he wouldn't take over, after all, he left all the comforting to Ryou, who was admittedly better at it. With a sigh he walked toward her room. He knocked softly. "Lin, are you all right?" he tried.

"Go away!" was the muffled response.

Ryou sighed again. He knocked softly again and said, "I'm coming in, Lin." He opened the door carefully and peeked in. When he deemed it safe he went in and left the door open. She was lying in bed, her face pressed against her pillow and her shoulders were shaking. The plushy Yugi had given her had been thrown on the ground. He sat at the edge of the bed and he placed a hand on her back. "Lin, what happened?" he asked quietly.

"Nothing, go away!" she said but it was muffled by the pillow. Ryou heard her sob.

He blinked at this and rubbed her back. "Come on Lin, talk to me. You can't keep things to yourself, it's not good for you," he encouraged.

She didn't say anything but then she lifted her head off the pillow and sat up. Ryou accommodated himself so that he was next to her. He sat cross-legged on the bed. He was surprised to see her crying, even though she was wiping the tears away furiously. "I'm so fuckin' stupid," she finally said as she looked down at the bed.

"What happened, Lin?" Ryou asked worriedly.

"I screwed up big time," she admitted.

"How? Did you get into a fight with Yugi-kun?" Ryou asked. What else could cause this reaction?

"No… but maybe that would have been better," she told him with a sigh. She wiped her eyes again.

"Did you go anywhere else besides his home?" he asked cautiously.

She shook her head. "No, it just took us a while to finish the game," was her response.

"Okay… so at least that went well, right?" he asked and she nodded. "So, what happened?"

She was silent a moment. "I… kissed him," she said quietly.

Ryou was startled at this revelation. "Wait… you… how did that happen?"

"It was a total accident!" she defended quickly. "He wanted a high five and so I was going to give him one but I lost my balance and we fell… I landed on top of him. And… and then I don't know what happened to me! I… I just kissed him!" she said looking mortified.

Ryou blinked. This was worse than he'd thought. "How did… Yugi-kun take it?" he asked warily. It couldn't have been a good reaction if it had Lin in this state.

She was again silent. "He… kissed back," she told him in a small voice.

"Okay… so, what's the problem?" Ryou asked confused. If he kissed back it's because he had no problem with it, right?

"That I kissed him! I wasn't supposed to kiss him! And… can you believe he actually wanted to talk about it?" she asked as if the idea itself was ludicrous.

Ryou couldn't help but give his friend a strange look. "Well, of course he'd want to talk about it, you'd just kissed him," he told her and she only sighed and shook her head. "From what I'm getting from you, you didn't talk about it, did you?"

She shook her head. "Of course we didn't," she said as if this should be the obvious course of action.

"What did you do then?" Ryou queried not sure if he wanted to know the answer.

"… I told him to forget it happened," she said quietly.

Ryou pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. "Perry Lin, how could you say that to him? When someone you just kissed wants to talk about it, that's a good sign! Did you ever think that he might tell you that he liked you too?" Ryou asked exasperated at his overreacting friend.

"Yeah, and he might tell me he doesn't, so what's your point? Look, I didn't want to risk it. It's just better if we pretend it didn't happen," she said and shrugged but she wasn't looking at him.

"Do you honestly think he's going to pretend nothing happened?" Ryou asked with an exasperated sigh.

"He should," she answered stubbornly.

"Lin, you're going to have to sort this out," Ryou stated.

"Don't tell me what to do… not with this," she told him sternly.

Ryou made a face but then sighed. She was right, he couldn't meddle in something like this if she didn't want him to. "Right, you know what you're doing," he said. They shared a hug and he left her room, knowing she needed time alone to think about what they'd talk about.

~.~.~.

**Please review and tell me your thoughts! Next is the second-to-last chapter!**


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER! I do not own anything Yugioh related. Just in case Abridged series done by LittleKuriboh!**

**A/N:** Sorry for anything apologizing-worthy, like OOCness! Um, please review!

~.~.~.

Sunday morning after breakfast found Ryou and Lin in the kitchen, washing and drying dishes and scrubbing the counters. Ryou was surprised at how normal Lin was this morning, but he let it go. He'd give it time and depending on how he thought Yugi took it, he would force his friend into talking to said boy. For now, he was just annoyed at his friend for doing that, not that he showed it. After cleaning the kitchen, he went into the living room to watch some TV while Lin went to her room, more likely than not to resume her normal activities of reading or watching anime. Ryou liked joining her sometimes, he did like most of the types of anime she watched and she'd let him borrow her manga if he found the anime interesting enough.

Some time later found Lin watching anime on her computer. Her legs were drawn up and her feet on the edge of the seat. She was holding a small bunny plushy to her. Her eyes were fixated on the screen and she didn't make a move when she heard the door. She was sure Ryou was in the living room, so it would be useless to get up. Besides, since they hardly got visitors unless it was one of their friends, it was most likely one of them. Ryou could take care of it.

She ignored the quiet padding of footsteps. "Hey, Lin," she heard Ryou say.

"Yeah… ?" she asked her eyes watching the scene on the screen.

"We've got company," he said.

"That's nice," she said distractedly.

"Say hi," he suggested, or she thought it was a suggestion. She wasn't paying much attention to his tone of voice.

"I'm busy," she said.

"Lin."

"What? I am," she responded.

"It's Yugi-kun," he said bluntly.

She went still and didn't move. She tried focusing on the screen. "That's nice, tell him I said hi," she said trying to keep her normal demeanor.

"He's here to talk to you," was all Ryou said.

She straightened in her chair but didn't do anything else. "I told you already, I'm busy," she said after a pause.

There was a long pause. "Lin-san?"

Lin went completely stiff recognizing Yugi's voice before rigidly pausing her anime. She gave a sigh. "Okay, I get it," she said and saved before putting her computer on standby. She turned around in her chair before standing and walking toward them. Yugi was standing in front of Ryou, who had a hand on his shoulder. "Come in," she said dully. Yugi tentatively walked further into the room. She walked toward Ryou, and consequently, the door.

"Don't screw this up," Ryou told her fixing her with a rather hard look she rarely saw on his face.

She blinked at him. "If I do, it's not because I tried to," she said before Ryou left and she closed the door. Turning to the boy who was standing there, she sighed again. "Well, this better be good," she told the smaller boy and went passed him to sit on the bed. She looked at him while holding her plushy.

"Um…" he trailed off.

"Since Ryou did me the favor," the word was said sarcastically, "of leading you to my room, can I ask you a question?" she queried.

Yugi blinked at her. "Sure," he said. He wasn't really knowing what to expect. She was acting as if she had really forgotten about it… as she had told him to do.

"Are you surprised about my room?" she asked him.

He blinked several times, processing her question, so irrelevant to what he wanted them to talk about. Still, he looked around her room, focusing on it for the first time. He'd have thought her room would be plain and not personalized. Perhaps have the necessary, a bed, a desk, a dresser. Maybe a bookshelf. But… well, her room _did_ have those things… but her room was rather personalized… aside from the various plushies in her room, including the one he had given her (he was happy about that). "I… I am, actually. I didn't take you to… like plushies," he admitted.

She sighed. "Yeah… it was all Amane's fault," she said but there was a fond smile on her features.

"Who?"

"Amane… that was Ryou's sister's name. She loved these things. She was the one who gave me my first plushy… I think that's when I started," she recalled. She held out her bunny plushy she had been holding and unsure if she wanted him to hold it, he took it hesitantly. "She gave this one to me… all that time ago. It's one of my favorites," she said with a little smile.

"Really?" Yugi asked. Now that he looked at it, it did look kind of worn.

"Yeah… this was the first plushy… of my unintentional collection," she said with a tiny smile.

He made an amused sound as he looked at the plushy in his hands. She really did treasure it, and he understood, it was most meaningful because of the memory, or memories, of a person she loved. "It must be very special too," he commented.

"Yes, yes it is," she said with a fond smile.

They both fell silent for a moment. He could feel her gaze on him, or maybe it was the plushy, but he was looking at the object in his hands. He wasn't sure why, but he didn't want to let go of it. Maybe it was because this was so precious to her… that she was letting him hold something that was special to her. He wanted to hold on to it for as long as possible. And the fact she had allowed it made him feel a little more determined for the reason he had come here.

"Lin-san… I need to talk to you," he said still looking down at the plushy.

"Yeah, I know. You couldn't do it either, could you?" was all she said.

He blinked, finally raising his eyes to look at her. "What do you mean?"

She shrugged and looked away from him. "Forget… about yesterday, I mean," was all she said and Yugi saw she was blushing.

"You mean… you couldn't… either?" he asked with a slight frown.

"Obviously not," she said tonelessly.

"Oh," he said and they again fell silent.

She drew her knees up and wrapped her arms around them. "I'm sorry if I stole your first kiss," she said suddenly and again she wasn't looking at him.

"Was it… yours too?" he asked haltingly.

She bit her bottom lip a moment before looking toward the window. "Yeah," she answered but she sounded slightly embarrassed to admit it.

"I guess we're even then," he said and immediately thought that most likely it wasn't the right thing to say.

She snorted. "Hm, guess so," was all she said.

"Why did you…?" he couldn't bring himself to finish the question and he blushed, but he knew she understood.

She didn't answer right away but when she did her tone was dull. "I thought that was obvious," she stated.

"Maybe I just… want to make sure…"

She snorted. "Why does it matter that I like you? I already apologized," she said sounding a little irritated. She stood and walked toward the window. She stood there in silence and she looked out of it.

He was shocked into silence. Did that mean… that she liked him? "But… do you?" he asked slowly.

She gave a frustrated sigh. "I do. If you want to tell me you don't feel the same, you don't have to, I already know," she said and she was still looking out the window.

Yugi was again silent. She did! She did like him! It made such a rush of feelings go through him and he was so happy that he flushed. He went toward her, he was still holding her plushy. He stood in front of her but she still didn't look at him, so he stared at her with wide eyes. She had to look at him eventually if he did this, right?

His patience was rewarded. She looked at him, something flashing in her eyes before she looked uncomfortable and looked away from him again. "What?" she muttered.

He looked at her and he shyly brushed his hand against hers while looking at her a little scared at her reaction. She looked startled at this and her eyes snapped to his. He felt his face become a lot warmer than it already was. "I-I do… feel the s-same," he stuttered. She blinked at him. He wasn't sure how to feel about that, or if she had processed what he'd said. "I-I… l-like you t-too," he clarified.

They were silent a moment where they only looked at each other. Finally, she sighed heavily and went toward the bed. She sat down with a huff. "I can't believe this, Ryou was right, I did screw this up," she said and fell back on the bed.

He cautiously walked up to her. "What's wrong?" he asked hesitantly.

She sighed. "Nothing, don't worry about it. Just something Ryou said," she said and she sat up and seemed slightly surprised to see him a lot closer than she expected.

He sat on the bed next to her. "S-so, what do we do now?" he asked quietly.

She sighed. "Do we have to do something about it?" she queried.

"W-well… n-no… not if you don't want to," he said a little dejectedly.

She paused. "Damn it, I screwed up, didn't I?" she asked him. He looked helplessly at her because he'd thought it'd be too mean to say yes. "I'll take that as a yes," she said and fell back on the bed again.

"It's okay if you don't want anything. I'm happy knowing you like me too," he tried to console a little confused as to what the problem was. Still, he couldn't force her into anything, and he really was happy to know she liked him.

"That's the thing, I do want something… but it kind of freaks me out… because I've never done this before," she admitted reluctantly.

He was silent a moment. He took her hand and he felt her go still before she sat up again. He smiled at her. "Well, maybe now we can talk about it… i-if you want," he said a little tentatively.

She looked down at their hands a moment. After another moment she flipped her hand over to hold his hand. He was again a little self-conscious about that, but he put it aside. "You might not understand as much as I'd like you to… our situations are different… and I'm kind of stuck…" she said and shook her head looking toward the window.

"Will you let me try?" he asked.

"Sure, if you think you can keep up," she said and shrugged. "By the way… it'd be in our best interest if your yami listened too," she told him.

He blinked at her in surprise. "You… know about Yami?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Of course I do. I can tell when you two switch places too. I mean, I know you've noticed Ryou's yami… and when you live with someone who has a yami, you just know," she informed.

Yugi was silent a moment. "Well… will you tell us then?"

Her lips quirked. "Well, okay. There's not much explaining to do, it's just kind of hard to wrap your mind around it I guess," she admitted. Yugi nodded for her to go on and he held her hand a little more firmly. "Well, as I'm sure your yami has told you, both spirits lived in Egypt three thousand years ago… and as such, you and Ryou are these spirit's reincarnations," she began.

Yugi's eyes widened. "Wait, what? I didn't know that… neither of us did," he said confused.

Lin frowned at this. "How can you not? You have the spirit of the Puzzle with you. You can communicate, can't you?" she asked. Yugi only nodded at this. Then she seemed to think about something. "Oh… that's right. The Spirit of the Puzzle doesn't remember because he wiped his memory before he locked himself up in the Puzzle. That's why," she said giving an assertive nod.

"How do you know all this?" Yugi asked curiously. She was silent a moment and Yugi spoke again. "Is it okay if… you explain this to Yami instead? I'll be listening, I just think that if Yami can find out anything about himself, it would make him feel better," he explained.

She blinked at him. "Well… okay," she said a little uncertainly. She blinked and she was suddenly looking at Yami. They pulled their hands away and she seemed to relax a little. She accommodated and sat cross-legged on the bed and he took a more casual position. She smirked. "We finally meet under non-threatening circumstances."

He smiled. "Yes, it's better this way," he commented.

She nodded. "Definitely," she said. "Well, let's have a semi-normal conversation then, shall we?"

He chuckled. "All right, then," he agreed.

She took a moment to organize her thoughts. "Well, I don't know everything, in fact, I only know a little information," she warned.

"It's more than I know," Yugi's yami assured.

She sighed and nodded. "Well, I just know that you must have been really special or had a position of power. In your past life you were able to seal away the Shadow Magic and keep Bakura, who also had a past life, from gaining all the Shadow power. In order to do so, however, you gave up your chance to go to the afterlife, as you sealed your soul in the Puzzle. Bakura, before you defeated him, had sealed his own soul in the Millennium Ring," she informed.

Yami frowned. "Bakura?"

She shook her head. "Not Ryou. I… well, I refer to Ryou's yami as Bakura," she explained. He nodded at this and so she continued. "Bakura won't tell me why, but he really, really hates you. Maybe because you ruined his plans. Unlike you, he remembers. I'm not sure how much he remembers, but he has a considerable amount of memories. However, I still don't know what triggered his hate or his want for Shadow power. That's pretty much all I know," she told him and she sounded slightly apologetic.

He smiled. "Thank you, I appreciate this information. But I do have a question," he said.

"Well, if I can answer, go for it," she said.

"Bakura is a rather evil spirit, I can feel as much," he said and she nodded slowly, "Yet he seems to care a lot about you. I wish to know why."

She seemed to be caught off guard at this and she hesitated. Slowly she said, "Bakura told me about that. Well, he wasn't as nice to me at first. We even engaged in a Shadow Game the first time we officially met," she began slowly.

Yami blinked surprised. "But then… did he bring you back from the Shadow Realm then?"

She shook her head. "No, I just won the game. As a reward he let me stay with Ryou. One time I was in a pretty tight spot… and Bakura helped me out. He finally told me something I wasn't expecting… I'm also a reincarnation of the past…" she trailed off.

"Really?" he asked and raised an eyebrow surprised.

"Yes, but I don't have a spirit. I'm a reincarnation… of Bakura's sister," she ended hesitantly.

He was silent a moment as he processed what she'd told him. "I'm surprised you don't hate me as well," he commented.

She snorted. "I have no reason to. Bakura may hate you for his own reasons, but I don't have any reasons to hate you. Besides, you helped me out that one day. If anything, I should be thankful to you," she answered.

He smiled. "Well, that's good to know; otherwise, it would be hard if my aibou's crush hated me," he commented.

She rolled her eyes but she was blushing a little. "What a teasing yami Yugi has," she said amusedly.

He chuckled. "What can I say? I'm just entertaining that way," he said and she gave a small laugh. After a moment he said, "I do believe you and Yugi still have something to talk about."

"That's right, we do," she said. He bid her farewell before she was once again staring at Yugi. "So, now that you know that, I believe I have some explaining to do," she said.

He smiled. "No, I think I get it," he said.

She tilted her head to the side. "Do you now?"

He nodded. "You care about Bakura-kun's yami too, don't you?" he asked.

"Well yeah… we might get into arguments but… he's always there for me… like Ryou is, like I am for him," she attempted to explain.

"You see him as your brother. You're stuck between him, who hates mou hitori no boku, and… me, right?" he asked and blushed.

She blinked at him. "Well… yeah. Huh, I guess you do understand as I wanted you to after all," she commented with a small smile. He returned the smile. She continued. "You know, I think I had more trouble admitting I liked you to myself than I did you. I had quite the conversation with Ryou about it… but, you know what he said to me?"

Yugi bit his lower lip. "What?" he asked unsure if he wanted to know the answer.

"He said that just as Bakura made choices in his life, I could make my own choices… and he's right I suppose… I just didn't think it'd be hard to do so," she told him.

He took her hand again, less hesitantly than before. "It's okay, whatever you choose. I'll understand," he said.

She again looked down at their hands. She was silent a long time. "Well… I'd like to try… if you want to try it with me," she said at long last with a shrug. She didn't look at him. He took a moment to think about the meaning of her words and then his face brightened. He took his hand away from hers and he hugged her. Startled, she went still a moment, but he didn't let go. After said moment she placed her arms carefully around him and she rested her head over his. "You're really cute, you know? And you look cuter holding that plushy," she commented.

He pulled back and looked at her with a flushed face and big eyes. "W-what?" he asked.

She seemed amused at this. "I think you heard me," she said before she leaned down to press her lips gently to his before she pulled away. He didn't let her pull away far before he leaned forward to kiss her. Lin allowed herself to be kissed, letting Yugi control it since he had started it. She wasn't sure why after a moment he allowed her to control the kiss or why he opened his mouth a little wider. She knew what he wanted but she wasn't sure if she should, that would be too intrusive, wouldn't it? What if, for some reason, he later regretted? Or what if he found out he didn't like it?

She pulled away and Yugi blinked up at her feeling a little dazed. "What's wrong?" he asked. Again, she hadn't deepened the kiss, even though he had wanted her to.

She seemed to be troubled about something. Still, she only shook her head and said, "It's nothing."

He looked at her. "Are you sure? You seem kind of… conflicted," he said a little worriedly. "Is it because we kissed?" he queried and couldn't help but blush.

"I already said-" she cut herself off and sighed. 'I already said it's nothing' is what she was going to say, but, well, this involved both of them. Besides, if they were going to have a relationship, they would have to communicate, didn't they? She wasn't very good at that, unless it was with Ryou (or Bakura) since she'd known them for a long time, but… well, it was worth the effort with Yugi, wasn't it? "Well, it's just that, when we kiss… you want me to… deepen it…" was as far as she could get before she had to clear her throat and look away from Yugi, knowing she was blushing. Because of this, she didn't see he was blushing darker than her. "And I… well…" she trailed off not really knowing how to explain it.

"It's all right if you don't want to kiss like that," he said quietly and when she looked at him, his face was an incredible shade of red and he was looking down at their hands.

"It's not that I don't want to… it's just that… I think I would feel better if… you kissed me like that first," she admitted. After all, if he did, she wouldn't have to think too much about how he'll take it when she did it. Besides, she'd get an idea of how it felt so that she would kind of know how it would feel for him.

They were both silent for a moment, unable to meet each other's gazes and both blushing noticeably. "Do you… want to try it… now?" he asked bashfully. He was still looking down at their hands. He did chance a glance at her when she didn't say anything. She was blushing also but she seemed to be thinking.

"Are you comfortable with doing that?" she asked and there was a touch of worry in her voice. Now she looked at him.

He nodded and looked up at her too. "I-I'm just… nervous, I guess… because I've never done it before… b-but it's okay if you don't want to do it now," he said adding the last part quickly.

She leaned her face closer to his and she was smiling an amused smile. "Are you always so thoughtful?" she said in a teasing tone. He didn't know exactly how to respond to that, so he was glad he didn't get a chance to answer. She brushed her lips lightly to his, like a butterfly kiss. It was almost as if she were encouraging him to start. He hoped he'd be able to not mess this up.

He pressed his lips to hers in a hesitant start, after all, she had been the one to kiss him first both times. He felt a lot better when she didn't hesitate to respond, though it was done in a tentative manner. Like last time, their eyes closed, and at feeling the sensations rush through them, he pressed his lips more firmly to hers, his kiss much less hesitant than before. She was responding in kind, one of her arms slid around his waist, supporting him, and her other hand was braced on the bed. He let his arms wrap around her neck and he pressed himself closer to her. This wasn't like their other kisses, this was different. After this, he shyly allowed his tongue to press gently against her lips. She made a sound of surprise before her lips slowly parted to grant him access. He allowed his tongue to slip into the inside of her mouth and he experimentally touched his tongue to hers. She gave something like a squeak of surprise at that but didn't seem to be against it. She sighed when he repeated the motion, opening her mouth a tad wider. He carefully caressed the roof of her mouth with his tongue as she brushed the tip of her tongue to the underside of his. He shivered at this and they both moaned.

Lin again allowed herself to be kissed, enjoying the sensations and the way Yugi was kissing her. He was rather passive and was only controlling the kiss because she was allowing him to do so. She knew he wasn't dominant, and that was okay with her. She wasn't all about wanting control, so she didn't mind giving him the opportunity, if he wanted it. It would be nice, like now. She liked that he was passive, it gave them both the chance to experiment and get used to each other. She sighed again and felt reluctance when they pulled away when they needed to breathe. They were both breathing hard and they were still holding on to each other.

"W-was that… okay?" he asked shyly. He wasn't looking at her face, he was looking somewhere near her throat, blushing noticeably.

She giggled, cutting herself off abruptly seeming surprised. "Sorry, I haven't giggled in a long time," she told him with a shake of her head when he glanced at her. After a pause she said, "Well, it's something I'd definitely like to get used to." She blushed lightly and looked off to the side.

"I-I'd like that too," he said quietly.

She was silent a long moment. "Well," she said lowly though she seemed a little bit bashful, "I do believe it's my turn." He didn't respond to that, but he felt a bit excited about it.

Her lips were firm but soft against his though her kiss was less hesitant than his, it was still done with some tentativeness. He was less shy when she was being dominant. He kissed back right away and she didn't need to coax him to open his mouth wider. She supposed that it was because this is what he had wanted since that first time. She allowed her tongue to slip into his mouth slowly, exploring in the same fashion. His reactions were weakening her and she didn't protest when he tugged her closer to him. She settled him on the bed, her hand braced on the bed going to the side of his face. She now braced herself on her elbow seeing as she didn't want to place her entire weight on Yugi. After what didn't feel like long at all, they had to pull away.

She sat up, bringing him up with her (since he still had his arms around her neck) as they tried to catch their breath. He leaned against her and she placed her arms around him again. He felt happy where he was now, listening to her heartbeat. He was thankful to Yami for giving him the advice he had, it had worked, and he had been able to help his yami find out something about himself. He smiled to himself and he closed his eyes and he thought that this silence was okay.

"I knew you couldn't be a mean person," he commented.

"Well, I obviously wouldn't be mean to my boyfriend, that would be stupid," she said as if this should be obvious. He smiled at the term 'boyfriend'. He thought it sounded nice.

He shook his head and pulled away enough to look at her face. "I always thought that. Since we met," he assured.

She raised an eyebrow. "How did you figure that?" she asked a little curiously.

"You help and protect Bakura-kun. Someone who helps someone else can't be mean," he said with an assertive nod.

She gave a chuckle. "You still have a long way to go… but you're innocent enough to think that, it's cute," she said with a shrug.

"Isn't it true though?" he asked looking adorably confused.

She sighed. "I live with Bakura, of course it's not true," she said and shook her head.

He thought about that a moment. He supposed she had a point. Bakura helped and protected Lin, but he was mean to everyone that wasn't her. "I guess you have a point," he admitted.

They fell silent again. "How long do you think we'll last?" she asked casually.

Yugi was startled at her question. "What do you mean?"

She shrugged. "We should be realistic, right? I mean, we're only sixteen," she said. Not to mention an evil spirit who had an enormous grudge against the spirit that inhabits the body of her boyfriend.

He blinked at her. He wasn't entirely sure what to say. He liked to think they didn't have to think about that because they would last. "Will you try to make it last with me?" he finally asked looking at her with wide eyes.

She stared at him a moment. "That's the thing… what if I screw it up? And since we're talking about me, that's more than likely," she replied reluctantly.

He was silent a moment. "What kind of… screwing up," he made a face at that and she had to smile, "are you talking about?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. I'm just… not girlfriend material. I mean, I'd obviously never cheat on you, that'd be unfair to you, but… I'm not always good at expressing myself. Seriously, even Ryou has to knock some sense into me sometimes… or Bakura. I'm telling you now so you know: I'm not the easiest person to get along with. The only reason Ryou and I get along so well is because we met before… everything happened," she paused here and he hugged her. "And with Bakura… well, we're kind of the same, minus the evil. I like to think I'm not evil," she said with a weak smile.

He returned the smile in the same fashion. "It still doesn't mean we won't last," he said quietly.

"You're actually willing to put up with me for more than a few months?" she asked surprised.

He frowned slightly. "Have you ever… had a boyfriend before?" he asked a little hesitantly.

She shook her head. "No, I've never cared to look too closely at any of Ryou's friends since none of them have interested me enough. You're the first," she told him casually before she smiled slightly at him.

He felt special knowing he was the first person to catch her attention, her first boyfriend. She was his first girlfriend too. He smiled at her before placing a hand on her shoulder. "Isn't that reason enough to try to make it work?"

She was silent a moment. "All I can promise is that I'll _try_ to make it work. I can't promise it'll last or that we'll work," she warned.

He hugged her tightly. "That's all I want. I promise to try to make it work too," he replied.

She silently hugged back closing her eyes. She hoped they would work and last. Yugi had something that just made you want to be near him. "What do we do now?" she asked him curiously. Neither of them had let go.

"Well… I was hoping you would like to… go on a date with me today," he said quietly.

She was silent a moment before she began running her hand up and down his back. He relaxed. "Did you have something in mind or do you plan to wing it?" she asked.

"Um… not planned…" he trailed off.

She chuckled. He was a lot like Ryou. "Aw, my boyfriend's sporadic," she said jokingly. "Um, how about lunch?" she suggested.

"I'd like that," he said, a smile in his voice. "What were you watching before?" he asked curiously.

"Anime. I'm into anime and manga… aside from gaming… I use to hack a lot but then Ryou made me say I wouldn't do it anymore unless extremely necessary," she said with a nod. "In short, I'm your average nerd." She shrugged.

He seemed surprised. "You hack? Like, into people's records?"

"Correction: I _use_ to hack. It's limited the number of times I've hacked into people's records. I usually hacked to find information… not about people," she said with a shrug.

He nodded. "What kind of anime do you like?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Different kinds. When you came in I was watching Black Jack," she told him. At his confused look she decided to explain, "It's about an unlicensed doctor who's among the five superb doctors in the world," she said with a nod. "I think it's pretty interesting," she added with a shrug.

He tilted his head to the side. "Would you like to eat lunch with me… and then we can watch it?" he suggested.

She smiled. "I'd like that… but I'm going to have to get ready… so, if you don't mind…" she trailed off.

He smiled before kissing her cheek and blushing. "I'll… go talk to Bakura-kun," he said and she nodded. She watched him walk out, he was still holding the plushy, which she found amusing. Admittedly, he looked awfully cute. She watched him close the door before she allowed herself to smile widely. Yes, she really hoped they lasted. With a grin she began getting ready for what she hoped was the first of many dates.

~.~.~.

**The Epilogue is next and the last chapter! It'll have the side pairing. Yugi and Lin are still together. Sorry if it's not what you're expecting! Unexpected (or perhaps totally expected) character appearance!**


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER! I do not own the Yugioh anime, characters, manga, or anything related! The Abridged series is done by LittleKuriboh (just in case)!**

**A/N: **Um… so, what can I say besides sorry for the _OOCness_? Here, Lin won't be the only one referring to Ryou by his given name! Wow, I can't believe I actually finished this. Anyway, this is probably as close as I'm going to get in writing yaoi with two cannon characters for this universe. As much as I like to read yaoi, I always have issues writing it. So, onward! Hope you enjoyed it, please _review_!

~.~.~.

It had been three years since Yugi and Lin's first date, a year after the Ceremonial Duel had taken place. Both Yugi and Ryou were free of their Spirits. Yugi and Lin missed Atem, and Lin missed Bakura terribly, but it was a good thing they had their friends and that Ryou understood. They had all coped fairly well and as expected, Yugi had taken the biggest loss, like losing a part of himself, he had told Lin all about it. She had been surprisingly understanding, and she listened patiently and tried to console him telling him that Atem should be happy being in the afterlife and that if he had left it was because Yugi was ready to be on his own. She wasn't sure if that was what she was supposed to say, but she felt consoled by it, because it was kind of the same with Bakura. She missed him, but at the same time she didn't hold a grudge against anyone because she had understood he needed to be defeated.

Lin and Yugi had, surprisingly, lasted as long and there didn't seem to be indication that they would be ending their relationship any time soon. When their friends first found out they had been thoroughly shocked, and she had gotten into an argument with Bakura – he had stopped talking to her for a whole month. She had felt terrible about that, but he had eventually let it go, grudgingly. By no means had their relationship been easy, it had its ups and downs, but they had both managed. They indeed each kept their promise to try to make the relationship last. Now, after three years, their disagreements were rare, although not entirely non-existent. She had softened up to him and being with Yami had toughened him, so now they each had new qualities, which bode with them just fine.

At the moment, they were both at Lin and Ryou's shared apartment. They were in the living room and Ryou was presumably in the bathroom or his own bedroom getting ready. Lin was still amused at seeing him so flustered and had left him alone after having teased him about it. She was brought out of her thoughts when Yugi touched her face gently. When she looked at him she realized he was looking up at her and that she had been spacing out again. "Sorry, just thinking," she said and shrugged, placing her hands on his waist. He accommodated himself on her lap.

He smiled at her. "I know," was all he responded.

The side of her mouth lifted and she leaned down to kiss him. He smiled against her lips. He liked it when she kissed him and he liked the fact that she wasn't embarrassed about PDA, although, he was usually the one who had to initiate it. His thoughts scattered when her arms slipped around him as she continued to kiss him. His arms went around her neck and he couldn't help but press himself closer to her. She caressed his tongue with hers and he couldn't help but moan. She set him gently on the sofa as she braced her weight on her elbow. Her hand slid down his side slowly before reaching the hem of his shirt. Her fingers brushed his skin underneath his shirt. He gasped and she left his mouth to kiss his neck softly.

He moaned. "L-Lin… Bakura-kun will…" he trailed off and shuddered as her fingers brushed against his bare side.

"He won't be out in a while," she assured and now her hand slipped under his shirt, feeling his smooth skin. She liked doing this, and she relished in his reactions.

He was trying to catch his breath but was not being very successful. Her teeth grazed his pulse point and he gasped. "B-but… what if-" he moaned as she nipped at his neck and her hand slid up his chest.

"Let's go to my room then," she suggested and her breath was rather ragged as well. She returned to kissing him on the lips and now she straddled his hips.

"Y-yes…" he said. She kissed him thoroughly and deeply once before she sat up and pulled him up as well. He was breathing hard. "Wow," was all he said.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "You make it sound as if we've never done that before," she told him.

"Well, it always feels like the first time we…" he trailed off and blushed.

She chuckled. "You're so cute," she said and stood. She took his hand and after tugging on it he stood. She led him to her room and closed the door. They made their way toward the bed, though the moment had passed so now they were in the room and she laid back against the pillows, Yugi sitting cross-legged next to her. She smiled, though it was more of a smirk. Yugi was still hesitant about doing anything more than make out when Bakura was in the apartment. Maybe it was because she teased him a lot about how loud he was.

"Bakura-kun really likes him, doesn't he?" Yugi asked conversationally, taking Lin out of her amused thoughts.

Lin shrugged. "Sure, though I'm not entirely sure what he sees in him. He's tried explaining it to me, but I don't think I get it much. Then again, he's not my crush-almost-boyfriend," she answered.

Yugi shook his head. "Don't say it like that," he admonished softly.

"Hey, I just tell it how I see it," she said indifferently.

Yugi sighed. Sometimes his girlfriend was impossible. "But it's okay… if Bakura-kun is taken with him, then it's okay," he said and shrugged.

Lin grinned. "Well, yeah, it'd be kind of sad if he wasn't taken with him and dating him. But anyway, as reluctant as I am to admit it, they look cute together, and he won't hurt Ryou," she said and shrugged.

Yugi smiled. "You always pretend to not like him," he said. It was true. They argued often, but it was strange that they both seemed to enjoy it.

"They both know I'm just joking, they know I don't think that. I mean, he can be a pain but, when he cares about someone, he's a good person I guess. Plus, Ryou's sane enough to not be clingy. Besides, I already gave both of them the talk about what would happen if one hurts the other," she said.

"To both?" Yugi said a little confused and curious. He didn't expect her to give Ryou that kind of talk.

"As much as I care for Ryou, he's not perfect. Of course, I have to listen to both sides of the story to make sure I'm not being rash in taking someone's side. But… I warned Ryou not to be stupid and that if he is, not to come running to me because I won't help. Ryou and he were surprised I was even giving him a benefit of a doubt. But hey, fair is fair," she said and shrugged.

Yugi smiled. "So, you're not playing favorites?" he asked.

"No, of course not. I mean, Ryou I care about a lot, but I shouldn't let him be a brat. Of course, I won't interfere in his relationship like he doesn't mess with mine, but it's just in case they get into a fight. I know that Ryou will come to me if that happens… like I go to him when we fight," she said and the last part was said with a bit of embarrassment. She blushed slightly and looked away from him and out the window.

Yugi placed a hand on hers before he decided to lie down next to her. "I go to Anzu," he admitted kind of bashfully. She was great help, because she usually gave him insight of a girl's perspective. Even if Lin didn't say or do things, Anzu would tell him that it was probably because she was trying to be tough and that Yugi should have done something or other.

Lin was silent a moment before he hugged her around the waist. She looked at him surprised and he only smiled at her. She chuckled. "You know, I think that if it weren't for Ryou and Masaki-san, we wouldn't even be together. Ryou's always telling me why I shouldn't have said something to you, or if I should have done something or other… since, you know, I suck at having the heart-to-heart talks and stuff. I somehow manage to screw up and say something stupid," she said with a sigh before running her hand up and down his back.

He smiled reassuringly at her. "You've gotten a lot better at it though. Thank you for listening and trying to express yourself when I insist on talking," he said sincerely. He said 'trying to express yourself' because they both knew she hadn't completely mastered that ability.

She made a sound of acknowledgement before she said kind of awkwardly, "…Thanks for being patient with me."

When Yugi looked at her, she was looking up at the ceiling and blushed a little. She looked so cute when she was being all embarrassed. He shifted and kissed her. She looked at him surprised before she kissed back and let her eyes close like he had done. It wasn't extremely rare when he did this, but it wasn't common either, which is why he still managed to surprise her when he did this. He was still glad she allowed him to be dominant and sometimes she even encouraged him to be, because he knew he didn't have to be forceful.

He brushed his tongue on the seam of her lips and she immediately allowed him access. He ran his tongue along hers and she moaned, her hand tangling in his hair, her other hand fisting in his jacket and she tugged him closer to her. One of his hands ran up and down her side and she shuddered a little at it. He liked that he could make her feel like she made him feel when she did this, because she deserved it, because despite everything that happened, she was an amazing girlfriend and he wouldn't change her for anyone.

He shifted his position and she did so too, until he was on top of her. Now both of her hands were on his jacket, but she was tugging it off. When she had managed she threw it aside but neither of them bothered to look where it had landed. His hand went back to her side, sliding up and down. He moaned when she suckled on his tongue, her hand running down his back. He finally pulled away as they needed to breathe, and she immediately tilted her head to the side, her hand slipping under his shirt. He gasped at the contact, his hand momentarily fisting at the side of her shirt.

"L-Lin…" he breathed before he seemed to relax and his hand eased from her shirt. He kissed her neck and she gave a slight whine at this. His hand went to the top of her shirt as he allowed his tongue to dart out and taste her. She inhaled sharply, her fingers digging into his back. He sighed and resumed his activities, and he unbuttoned the top button of her shirt. Her hands tangled in his hair and she tugged on him and he pulled away then to kiss her on the lips again. His fingers brushed against her skin as he undid yet another button and she sighed at this.

"Gods… Yugi…" she trailed off as he returned his hand to her side. He once again pulled away so that he was able to kiss her collarbone. She vaguely wondered why she still had her shirt on… but then he was in control, so things tended to go slower. She rode his shirt up and she brushed her fingers against his back. He had been nipping on her collarbone when she did this, so he ended up nipping her a bit too hard. She felt something between pain and pleasure and she shuddered noticeably at this. "Y-yes…" she gasped out. His fingers teased the hem of her shirt before he was kissing her jaw. "Tease," was all she managed to breathe out, her hands going up and down his bare sides, unless she dug her fingers into his back when she moaned. He returned to her lips before his hand slipped under her shirt, his hand running up her side slowly. "Yugi…" she managed to trail off between kisses and drew in a shaky breath.

They were, unfortunately, interrupted when the doorbell rang. They continued kissing but Yugi, ever the considerate one, muttered, "Shouldn't… you get that?"

"Screw it," she mumbled and she tugged on his shirt. The doorbell rang again. "Ignore it," she said quickly before he could comment.

She was disappointed, however, when Yugi, with difficulty, pulled away and sat up. "You… should answer that… Bakura-kun might… still be getting ready," he managed to say as he tried to catch his breath.

The doorbell rang yet again. She gave an exasperated sigh and sat up before sliding off the bed. "I am going to _kill_ whoever it is," she said with a growl before she went toward the door and opened it. "I'll get it," she hollered so Ryou wouldn't bother. She sprinted toward the door and opened it, out of breath.

He looked at her when she opened the door. Out of breath and looking rumpled. The top two buttons of her shirt were undone and her collarbone had what looked something like a love bite. Her hair was tousled and her clothes disarranged indicating that Yugi was visiting. He raised an eyebrow. Her eyes narrowed but she opened the door wider. "Come in, Cinderella is still getting ready…" she trailed off and she seemed to think better of this when he walked in. "No, not Cinderella, that would imply you're the Prince," she said and made a face as she closed the door.

"I'm not yours anyway, since you're not my type," he said with a smirk as she walked toward him.

"Of course you're not my type," she said with a smirk to match his. "I prefer my guys to like girls, thank you very much," she said and she sounded amused.

He rolled his eyes at that. "Like I said, not my type," he repeated.

She snorted. "Of course you're not. My type happens to be the one that was about to make love to me when we were so rudely interrupted by a certain someone," she said and sighed regretfully with a shake of her head. He only snorted at this.

"Lin!" she heard behind her and she turned to see Yugi, who was incredibly flushed. He'd tried to tidy himself, but hadn't done too great of a job.

She shrugged. "What? It's true," she said nonchalant and the boy behind her snorted amusedly again. She sighed and shook her head. "Well, I'll leave the two opposites in the room while I'll go see if Princess Buttercup is ready. Please, excuse me," she said and grinned at them before she darted in the direction of Ryou's room.

She knocked on the door softly. She heard the faint, "Come in," and so she did so. "He's here, right? How do I look?" he asked nervously.

She couldn't help it, she laughed. "Yeah, Westley's here. You look like always," she said and added, when he looked about to freak out, "You look great Ryou. You always look good, now you look great! He's going to have to keep you close, lest someone kidnaps you."

He giggled at Lin calling his date Westley. But then he was twisting his fingers nervously. "Are you sure?" she asked him.

She sighed. "Ryou, he likes you for who you are. It's okay, you look fine, and it'll go great, okay? Just be yourself, he likes you for it," she assured and hugged him.

He nodded with a tad more determination. "All right, you're right. Can you… entertain him a bit?" he asked her.

"Oh, with all the threats I could make… sure, I'd love to," she told him with a grin.

"Lin," he said a little pleadingly.

"Calm down, I'm just kidding," she said and headed toward the door. "Besides, it's not like Mr. Tall-Dark-And-Handsome can't take a joke," she told him and walked out the room, closing the door behind her. When she walked into the living room, everything went strangely silent. They seemed to relax, however, when they saw she was alone. "Princess Buttercup should be ready shortly. In the meantime, I was told to entertain Westley… I mean, Kaiba," she said grinning at him.

He rolled his eyes at her, but Yugi was the one who spoke. "Kaiba-kun was going to tell me where he's taking Bakura-kun today," he said with a smile.

"Really? Hey, I'll spare you the warnings and threats if you tell me where you're taking him today," she told him with a winning smile.

"You're not giving me much to choose from," he answered dully.

Her smile didn't falter. "But I _am_ giving you _some_ choices," she replied and raised an eyebrow.

He looked at her with a bored expression. Then he looked away from both Yugi and Lin. "I'm taking him to the aquarium," he said.

Her smile was a lot more genuine when he looked back at them. "He loves it there, good pick. I'm impressed," she said. Yugi smiled and went to her and took her hand. She smiled down at him.

"Oh, I feel so special to know you approve," he said sarcastically.

"As you should," she said agreeing in a similar tone. They were silent a moment. Lin sighed, more seriously she said, "But really Kaiba, I'm glad you're taking the time to take it slow with him." She looked away from him feeling a little embarrassed.

"And Lin is glad he's with you because she knows you care for him," Yugi added and looked up at Lin. She looked embarrassed and shrugged but she was also smiling a little.

Kaiba was silent a moment. He crossed his arms over his chest and looked away from them. After a moment he said, "Of course I care… but it's a good thing I'm not the only who does," he said sounding pretty reluctant.

"Yeah," was all she said. It was silent a moment. "Great, now it just got all awkward. Gosh, Ryou doesn't even _need_ that much time to get ready. He's already cute without the make-up," she said and rolled her eyes.

"What?" Yugi asked looking at her with wide eyes.

Lin glanced at him and laughed. "Calm down, I'm just kidding," she said with a shake of her head. Finally, Ryou showed up in the living room. "May I present to you, Princess Buttercup," she said and grinned at Ryou when he blushed.

Ryou went to stand next to Lin. "Hello," he greeted with a little shy smile.

Lin smiled. Ryou really was cute. "Well, I believe our job here is done, since we were supposed to keep Kaiba busy until you decided to show. Well you two, have a good time, and Kaiba, bring him back at a reasonable time… no later than five in the morning please," she said in mock-seriousness before she grinned at the taller male.

Kaiba rolled his eyes. "I'll keep that in mind," was all he said before she and Yugi excused themselves again. Then, she took Yugi's hand and she led him to what he presumed was her bedroom, while speaking lowly. He and Lin argued often he supposed, but it was strange that whenever one of them wasn't in the mood to argue or just wanted some peace and quiet, the other would know and they would sit in comfortable silence or just talk about nothing in particular. He felt comfortable enough to do that with her, and it was a good thing they got along so well, since she was Ryou's best-friend-almost-sister and she was really protective of him. She liked him too, or else she would have protested to him dating Ryou. He hadn't exactly known how to go about it as he'd never in his life wanted (or had) to date anyone, so he decided that the one who would give him more hell would be her. So, he more or less asked her if it was okay if he could date her friend. She had said it was fine as long as Ryou agreed, and had warned him not to try to take advantage of Ryou. He had assured her that wasn't his intention at all.

It was around the third date when she had asked to speak to both of them. He hadn't really known what to expect, but was surprised when she was being all serious. She had started by saying that it would more likely than not be the case that if they pursued a relationship and had a fight, that Ryou would go to her. Kaiba, before she had mentioned it, had been aware of this, since they were so close (in fact, if he hadn't known about Yugi being her boyfriend, he would have assumed her and Ryou were a couple). She had also warned both that she wouldn't pick sides, and if it were serious, she would give Kaiba the benefit of doubt until she heard both sides of the story. He had been surprised at this, that she was actually willing to be fair. She had told him that she knew Ryou but that it wouldn't be fair to Kaiba if she didn't do this. She'd also warned him that if he hurt Ryou in any way, he would have to deal with her. And he knew she wasn't someone you messed with. She prioritized protecting Ryou (much like he with Mokuba) and she could care less about the amount of money and power he had, and he also had no intention to hurt Ryou, and he had told her as much. They seemed to get along a little better after that.

Kaiba shook his head and looked down at the teenage boy glancing at him bashfully. "You have really good friends," he commented.

Ryou smiled up at him, feeling a little better. As much as he really liked Kaiba, he was still a little intimidated by him. "Yes, I do. And I'm glad about that… but we both have good friends," he answered.

Kaiba smirked. "Sometimes I wonder about that," was all he said. He was aware of the fact Ryou knew this was a joke. He lived with Lin after all. "Is there anything else you needed or can we go?" he asked.

"No, nothing. We can go now," he replied a little meekly. They walked to the door and Ryou put on his shoes. Then, they both walked out.

Ryou stopped walking and looked at Kaiba a little confused once in front of the vehicle. The taller male shrugged. "I've noticed how uncomfortable you get when we take the limo, so I thought you'd prefer this," he said gesturing toward a normal sports car.

"You… you didn't have to," the quiet boy answered but he was smiling and it seemed to light up his eyes.

Kaiba shrugged feeling something between uncomfortable and proud of himself that he had managed to make Ryou happy. "I'd prefer it if my boyfriend felt comfortable while with me," he rejoined, the word 'boyfriend' feeling foreign on his lips.

Ryou's eyes widened and he looked up at Kaiba but he couldn't decipher the expression. "Y-your… boyfriend? Really?" he asked and there was such noticeable hope in his voice.

Kaiba shrugged again. "Well, if you want to be. I mean, we've only been dating for six months," he answered something between sarcastic and kind of awkward.

Ryou couldn't help it. He gave a short, light laugh. When he thought about it, Kaiba was a lot like Lin. "Of course I want to be," he said with a smile and tentatively reached for Kaiba's hand but then he stopped before returning his hand to his side. He knew Kaiba wasn't really into physical displays of affection and anything he did was always initiated by Kaiba himself, since Ryou didn't want to pressure him into anything.

Kaiba took his hand and tugged until they were facing each other. "It seems like I still can't manage to make you comfortable around me," he said while raising an eyebrow.

Ryou blushed but said, "I just… I don't want to pressure you into any physical display because I don't want to make _you_ uncomfortable."

Kaiba wanted to sigh; maybe Ryou was a little _too_ considerate. "Look, just because I don't do it doesn't mean I mind if you do it. If you're that kind of person, I don't mind you doing it because that's who you are. I'm not opposed to it because…" he trailed off and shrugged; though he tried to play it cool (as he tried to do everything) he was blushing a little. "Well, because it'd be you, I suppose."

Ryou watched him a moment before breaking into a breathtaking smile that had Kaiba staring. He wouldn't be very intimidated of Kaiba then if he really was willing to do this… for _him_. "Really? You wouldn't mind?" he queried.

"No," was the simple response.

Ryou's smile widened and his hand slipped from Kaiba's before hesitantly hugging him and resting his head on his chest. His body relaxed. So _this_ is how it felt to hug Kaiba. It felt rather nice. Ryou felt safe and warm, especially when he felt Kaiba's arms around his waist. "Thank you," he said quietly.

"Sure," was the answer and again Ryou smiled. Yeah, he really was a lot like Lin. After a moment he pulled away and looked up at Kaiba with bright, curious eyes. Kaiba merely looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"Where are we going today?" he asked and blinked those pretty brown eyes at him.

"Can't tell you, it's a surprise," was the reply.

Ryou sighed. "Okay," he said but then he pouted.

Kaiba's lips quirked. Ryou looked thoroughly attractive, more so when he did that. "You'll see when we get there," was what Kaiba said before he leaned down and brushed his lips against Ryou's pouting mouth.

It was almost comical how his expression changed and he looked stunned. He blinked at him. Ryou touched his own lips still looking surprised but there was a trace of thoughtfulness in his expression as well. "I… liked that," he said quietly, his hand dropping to his side and he tilted his head up slightly, looking at his boyfriend. Ryou liked how that sounded.

Kaiba chuckled at his boyfriend's antics. Sometimes he wondered if he was as innocent as he looked. Without a word the taller male leaned down and captured Ryou's lips in a short, light kiss. He was surprised at Ryou's eagerness to respond, but Kaiba concluded he'd wanted this as much as him for a long time now. He pulled away and he gave a small smile at his white-haired teen. He seemed a little dazed but then he smiled and hugged him again. After a moment Kaiba said, "If we plan to get there some time today, we might as well leave now." He was reluctant, but they had to get going. Plus, he felt relieved at knowing Ryou did like the aquarium.

Ryou gave a short laugh. "Yes, okay," was all he said. They let go of each other and Kaiba opened the door for Ryou, who smiled his thanks and slipped into the car, watching as Kaiba closed his door and then went around to his own side. Ryou was happy, very much so. Just before his date they were now officially a couple, and Kaiba had said it was all right if Ryou decided to initiate PDA. He felt a lot better and a lot less intimidated. Finally, after years, he was happy because he had the best of friends, and a boyfriend who cared for him.

Lin and Yugi watched them through the window in Lin's room. They watched as Kaiba drove away. Lin laughed. "Geez, finally, I thought I'd never see the day. Kaiba must have asked him to be his boyfriend, if Ry's expression was anything to go by. I'm happy for them, I hope they have a good time at the aquarium," she said now with a smile.

Yugi looked at his girlfriend and smiled. He was happy because she looked ecstatic. And he was happy for Bakura and Kaiba as well. "If that's the case, then I'm happy for them, they deserve it. And I'm happy, because it makes you happy," he told her.

She smiled at him and she placed her arms around his waist and pulled him close. "And I'm happy… because I have you," she said and though it sounded kind of awkward her body was relaxed.

"I'm happy because I have you too," he answered.

"Well, it's a good thing there are still some happy endings lying around. I mean, if Princess Buttercup and Westley could have a happy ending, I'm sure Mister Darcy and Elizabeth could be happy too," she said with an assertive nod.

Yugi blinked at her. "I'm like Mister Darcy?" he asked.

"No, actually, that's me," she said and laughed at his expression. She leaned down and kissed him. "Don't worry love, you'd look lovely in one of those pretty dresses," she said.

He pouted and crossed his arms over his chest. He really was a lot like Ryou. "That's more you," he replied.

She kissed the pout away. "Hm, dresses are not my thing. But, maybe you should pick the analogy next time," she said.

He bit his lip to keep from smiling. "That's better," he said with an assertive nod. Then he smiled.

She chuckled. "Well, let's hope everything goes well for them. In the meantime, care to join me in watching anime?" she asked as if this were a serious question.

He seemed to think about it a moment. "Well, okay. But next time, we have to play a video game… or go to the arcade," he suggested.

She bit her lip as if thinking. "Well, I don't seem to have much choice. I agree," she said and stuck out her hand.

He placed his hands behind his back, assuming an innocent expression. "I heard somewhere that an agreement carries more weight when it's sealed with a kiss," he said.

She grinned. "If you insist," she said with a dramatic sigh before she leaned down and gave him a thorough kiss. "Was that… well-sealed for you?" she managed through ragged breaths.

"Most definitely," was the response as he too was trying to catch his breath. They shared a laugh and then went toward the direction of her laptop. Somehow, they both knew that at least for today, everything was going to turn out well… just as the past three years had gone for them.

_=Finis=_

****Gods! I'M SORRY FOR THE OOCness AND THE CRAP ENDING! I can't believe I screwed up this epilogue! This is the worst one I've written. *sigh* Damn, I didn't know writing Kaiba's character when paired with a cannon character would be so hard! Please… review? All I can do is ask right now. **


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